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GOP push to make Trump’s 2017 tax cuts permanent, say going back would be a ‘dramatic’ change for many
Tax season is done.
And this year, Congressional Republicans converted tax season to «sales» season. Republicans and President Donald Trump are pushing to approve a bill to reauthorize his 2017 tax cut package. Otherwise, those taxes expire later this year.
«We absolutely have to make the tax cuts permanent,» said Rep. Tom Tiffany, R-Wis., on FOX Business.
«We’ve got to get the renewal of the President’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. That’s absolutely essential,» said Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., on FOX Business.
Rates for nearly every American spike if Congress doesn’t act within the next few months.
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Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., talks with the media after the House passed the budget resolution on Thursday, April 10, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
«We are trying to avoid tax increases on the most vulnerable populations in our country,» said Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee which determines tax policy. «I am trying to avoid a recession.»
If Congress stumbles, the non-partisan Tax Foundation estimates that a married couple with two children – earning $165,000 a year – is slapped with an extra $2,400 in taxes. A single parent with no kids making $75,000 annually could see a $1,700 upcharge on their tax bill. A single parent with two children bringing home $52,000 a year gets slapped with an additional $1,400 in taxes a year.
«Pretty significant. That’s an extra mortgage payment or extra rent payment,» said Daniel Bunn of the non-partisan Tax Foundation. «People have been kind of used to living with the policies that are currently in law for almost eight years now. And the shift back to the policy that was prior to the 2017 tax cuts would be a dramatic tax increase for many.»
But technically, Republicans aren’t cutting taxes.
«As simple as I can make this bill. It is about keeping tax rates the same,» said Sen. James Lankford, R-Oklahoma, on Fox.
Congress had to write the 2017 tax reduction bill in a way so that the reductions would expire this year. That was for accounting purposes. Congress didn’t have to count the tax cuts against the deficit thanks to some tricky number-crunching mechanisms – so long as they expired within a multi-year window. But the consequence was that taxes could climb if lawmakers failed to renew the old reductions.
«It sunsets and so you just automatically go back to the tax levels prior to 2017,» said Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa.
A recent Fox News poll found that 45% of those surveyed – and 44% of independents believe the rich don’t pay enough taxes.
Democrats hope to turn outrage about the perceived tax disparity against Trump.
«He wants his billionaire buddies to get an even bigger tax break. Is that disgraceful?» asked Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., at a rally in New York.
«Disgrace!» shouted someone in the crowd.
«Disgraceful! Disgraceful!» followed up Schumer.
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., (R) speaks alongside Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., (L) to reporters during a news conference on the impacts of the Republican budget proposal at the U.S. Capitol on April 10, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)
Some Republicans are now exploring raising rates on the wealthy or corporations. There’s been chatter on Capitol Hill and in the administration about exploring an additional set of tax brackets.
«I don’t believe the president has made a determination on whether he supports it or not,» said White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt.
«We’re going to see where the President is» on this, said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent while traveling in Argentina. «Everything is on the table.»
A Treasury spokesperson then clarified Bessent’s remarks.
«What’s off the table is a $4.4 trillion tax increase on the American people,» said the spokesperson. «Additionally, corporate tax cuts will set off a manufacturing boom and rapidly grow the U.S. economy again.»
Top Congressional GOP leaders dismissed the idea.
«I’m not a big fan of doing that,» said House Speaker Mike Johnson on Fox. «I mean we’re the Republican party and we’re for tax reduction for everyone.»
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«I don’t support that initiative,» said House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., on FOX Business, before adding «everything’s on the table.»
But if you’re President Donald Trump and the GOP, consider the politics of creating a new corporate tax rate or hiking taxes on the well-to-do.
Sunrise light hits the U.S. Capitol dome on Thursday, January 2, 2025, as the 119th Congress is set to begin Friday. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The president has expanded the GOP base. Republicans are no longer the party of the «wealthy.» Manual laborers, shop and storekeepers and small business persons now comprise Trump’s GOP. So maintaining these tax cuts helps with that working-class core. Raising taxes on the wealthy would help Republicans pay for the tax cuts and reduce the hit on the deficit. And it would shield Republicans from the Democrats’ argument that the tax cuts are for the rich.
Congress is now in the middle of a two-week recess for Passover and Easter. GOP lawmakers and staff are working behind the scenes to actually write the bill. No one knows exactly what will be in the bill. Trump promised no taxes on tips for food service workers. There is also talk of no taxes on overtime.
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Republicans from high-tax states like New York and Pennsylvania want to see a reduction of «SALT.» That’s where taxpayers can write off «state and local taxes.» This provision is crucial to secure the support of Republicans like Reps. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., and Mike Lawler, R-N.Y. But including the SALT reduction also increases the deficit.
So what will the bill look like?
«Minor adjustments within that are naturally on the table,» said Rounds. «The key though, [is] 218 in the House and 51 in the Senate.»
In other words, it’s about the math. Republicans need to develop the right legislative brew which commands just the right amount of votes in both chambers to pass. That could mean including certain provisions – or dumping others. It’s challenging. Especially with the slim House majority.
People attend a press conference and rally in support of fair taxation near the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on April 10, 2025. (Bryan Dozier / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP)
«There were trade-offs and offsets within that bill that many people are dissatisfied with,» said Bunn of the 2017 bill. «And it’s not clear how the package is going to come together with those various trade-offs.»
Johnson wants the bill complete by Memorial Day. Republicans know this enterprise can’t drag on too late into the year. Taxpayers would see a tax increase – even if it’s temporary – if working out the bill stretches into the fall when the IRS begins to prepare for the next tax season.
It’s also thought that finishing this sooner rather than later would provide some stability to the volatile stock markets. Establishing tax policy for next year would calm anxieties about the nation’s economic outlook.
«The big, beautiful bill,» Trump calls it, adding he wants the legislation done «soon.»
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And that’s why tax season is now sales season. Both to the lawmakers. And to the public.
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The Israel Defense Forces on Thursday released a video it said shows the moment an Israeli F-35I «Adir» stealth fighter jet shot down an Iranian air force Yak-130 over Tehran, marking the first time the advanced aircraft has downed a manned fighter in combat.
«Completed. Target down. The target is down,» the pilot can be heard saying in the footage set to «Star Wars» theme music.
Israel’s military said Wednesday that the shoot down over the Iranian capital was a key milestone for its F-35 fleet.
Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, commander of the Israeli air force, commended the pilots who carried out the mission as part of Operation Roaring Lion.
An Israeli Air Force F-35I «Adir» shoots down an Iranian Yak-130 fighter jet in a historic aerial engagement. (@IDF/X)
«The historic shoot down over the Tehran skies is a testament to the strength of the Israeli Air Force and to your personal determination,» Bar said. «The war continues – return home safely. Get some rest. The next mission is already waiting for you.»
The F-35I is Israel’s customized version of the U.S.-made F-35 Lightning II, a fifth-generation stealth fighter that anchors the country’s air fleet.
Israel became the first country to select the aircraft through the U.S. government’s Foreign Military Sales process in 2010 and received its first jet in June 2016.
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An Iranian Yak-130 is struck midair by an Israeli F-35I «Adir» during a high-stakes confrontation. (@IDF/X)
The Israeli air force gave the aircraft the Hebrew name «Adir,» meaning «Mighty One.»
The Yak-130, by contrast, is a Russian-made, two-seat combat training aircraft designed by the Yakovlev Design Bureau and manufactured by United Aircraft Corporation.
It first flew in 1996 and remains in active production.
Iran received its first Yak-130 aircraft in September 2023, according to Press TV, Iran’s state-run English-language broadcaster, as part of a broader effort to modernize its air force.
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A Russian-made Yak-130 subsonic two-seat advanced jet trainer and light attack aircraft maneuvers during a flying display on the third day of the Farnborough International Airshow in Hampshire, England, on July 11, 2012. (Adrian Dennis/AFP via Getty Images)
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In November 2023, Brig. Gen. Mahdi Farahi, Iran’s deputy defense minister, told Tasnim, a semi-official Iranian news agency, that plans had been finalized for Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets, Mil Mi-28 attack helicopters and additional Yak-130 trainers to join the country’s armed forces.
Iran previously acquired MiG-29 fighter jets from Russia in the 1990s.
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Tom Emmer calls for Tim Walz, Keith Ellison to ‘serve jail time’ if fraud coverup allegations are true
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EXCLUSIVE: The highest-ranking Minnesotan in Congress is calling for a deeper investigation into allegations that leaders in his state government knowingly ignored evidence of welfare fraud, and he called for those leaders to even face incarceration if proven true.
«People are sick and tired of elected officials having a double standard, being treated differently than they are. They’re held accountable for things that they should be held accountable for, when their elected officials are not,» House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., told Fox News Digital.
«If these two guys are dirty, they should be held accountable, and they should serve jail time.»
He was referring to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and state Attorney General Keith Ellison, two of several witnesses at a high-profile hearing on fraud conducted by the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday.
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer is criticizing Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s administration over the fraud scandal plaguing the state. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images; Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images)
Both Walz and Ellison insisted that they were serious about prosecuting fraud in the state’s social programs and that they took action to stop it once it was brought to their attention.
But Emmer cited a report by the House Oversight Committee that accused them both of knowing about the fraud earlier than previously thought and delaying public accountability for fear of political retribution from progressives in the state — particularly the Somali community in Minneapolis, who Republicans have accused of taking advantage of the state’s welfare system.
«They might have been able to qualify it enough that it wasn’t black and white, but if they lied to the committee this morning about knowing about the fraud and when they knew about the fraud and the FBI investigation, that is a criminal act of its own,» Emmer told Fox News Digital.
SCATHING AUDIT REVEALS MORE FRAUD CONCERNS INSIDE TOP MINNESOTA AGENCY WITH FABRICATED DOCUMENTS, ‘MISCONDUCT’
«So I do believe, depending on this report and what else the majority staff is doing, they very well may want to call them back in and depose them under oath.»
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison speaks during a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing on Capitol Hill. (Tom Brenner/AP Photo)
He added at another point, «You have maybe 80 to 100,000 Somalis in Minnesota. Tim Walz won with 52%. They made a difference. Keith Ellison won by less than 1%. I think it was 20,000 votes. Makes a difference. So if those are connected, yeah, I mean, this is campaign fraud.»
«I’ve taken accountability for this. I’m not going to run again. I need to spend the time fixing this,» Walz said during the hearing. «This does undermine trust in government. Do I wish there were things that could have happened earlier? Yes. But in this job, ‘wish’ didn’t do it. I’m looking into where I see it.»
CONVICTED MINNESOTA FRAUDSTER ALLEGES WALZ, ELLISON WERE AWARE OF WIDESPREAD FRAUD
At another point, Walz attributed the rise in fraud statistics to an increase in prosecutions, telling Republicans, «When you catch people and prosecute them, it shows up as a fraud increase.»
He also dismissed accusations that he kept whistle-blowers quiet over fear of being seen as Islamophobic, «I can’t speak to it because it’s not anything I would say.»
Ellison, meanwhile, said he was happy to work across bipartisan lines to prosecute fraud.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz testifies during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing at the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., on March 4, 2026. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
«I am here to work to improve this system, and there are improvements that can be made,» he said. «If we can get out of fixing the blame and get to fixing the problem, that would be an enormous thing for me.»
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But Emmer, who maintained that further investigation was needed, suggested he doubted their intentions.
«It’s power. They want power. In order for them to get power, they need to be elected. In order for them to get elected, they have to cheat in different ways. And that is exactly what they did,» Emmer said. «If the Somali community is being used by these public officials to get themselves into office…it sure does look suspect, it needs to be investigated.»
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INTERNACIONAL
Vuelven las filas por combustible en Bolivia y crece la presión sobre el Gobierno por la calidad del suministro
En los últimos días volvieron a registrarse filas de vehículos en los surtidores de La Paz y Santa Cruz de la Sierra ante el anuncio de demoras en los despachos por parte de Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB).
A través de un comunicado publicado el martes, la petrolera informó que debido al proceso de preparación e incorporación de nuevos aditivos en la gasolina, se podía presentar una “leve demora” en la distribución y que la situación se normalizaría “en las próximas horas”. Sin embargo, hasta las primeras horas de este jueves, las filas continuaban en las estaciones de servicio.
El procedimiento que se realiza en la gasolina se produce en medio de un escándalo por la calidad del combustible al que se atribuye el bajo rendimiento de los vehículos y daños en motores reportados en los últimos meses. Según el Colegio de Ingenieros Mecánicos de Bolivia (CIMB), al menos el 60% de los vehículos que actualmente se encuentran en talleres mecánicos presentan problemas relacionados con el carburante.
El presidente de YPFB, Yussef Alky, admitió en una conferencia de prensa anterior que la petrolera distribuyó combustible contaminado con residuos de goma y manganeso que quedaban en los tanques de almacenamiento heredados de la anterior gestión.
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El presidente Rodrigo Paz calificó esta situación como un acto de “sabotaje” dentro de la estatal petrolera y afirmó que ya se tiene identificados a los responsables. Sin embargo, a más de un mes de iniciado el conflicto, aún no se han presentado los presuntos implicados, ni se ha explicado la forma en la que han operado ni tampoco las estrategias para evitar que vulneraciones de ese tipo se repitan en la empresa más grande e importante del país.
Por lo pronto, la petrolera informó que se incorporarán antioxidantes y detergentes para remover partículas, evitar la formación de elementos dañinos y la degradación de la gasolina, lo que es una práctica “ampliamente utilizada a nivel internacional”.
Guido Moreno, presidente del Colegio de Mecánicos, cuestionó lo que considera una falta de planificación. “Es un proceso que se debe hacer de forma profesional, con instalaciones y equipos precisos para este tipo de tareas .Se entiende que se pueda retrasar un poco el despacho, pero debería haber estado planificado”, manifestó en una entrevista televisiva.
En paralelo a este procedimiento, el Gobierno dispuso la militarización de las plantas de YPFB en El Alto, Cochabamba y Santa Cruz con el objetivo de “defender” a la petrolera de “las mafias y de la corrupción”. El presidente Paz señaló que esta decisión apunta a realizar un seguimiento en toda la cadena de producción y distribución para garantizar la trazabilidad de los combustibles.
Bolivia atraviesa desde hace tres años una crisis de carburantes que inició con periodos de desabastecimiento y continúa con problemas para garantizar los estándares de calidad.
Los crecientes problemas de importación por la falta de divisas provocaron periodos de escasez que iniciaron en 2023 y se fueron haciendo cada vez más frecuentes y prolongados. El nuevo gobierno, que tomó posesión en noviembre de 2025, levantó el subsidio a los combustibles que estuvo vigente durante más de 20 años y suponía uno de los mayores gastos públicos. Paralelamente, el suministro se fue regularizando, pero surgieron cuestionamientos sobre los controles y la calidad de la gasolina que se distribuye.
En ese marco, la Cámara de Senadores convocó para este jueves al ministro de Hidrocarburos, Mauricio Medinaceli, para brindar un informe sobre la gasolina y otras cuestiones relacionadas a la estatal petrolera. La cita está programada para las 14:00, hora local.
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