{"id":2409515,"date":"2025-03-04T12:52:02","date_gmt":"2025-03-04T17:52:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-counts-on-obscure-senate-referee-to-pass-trumps-tax-agenda-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2025-03-04T12:57:16","modified_gmt":"2025-03-04T17:57:16","slug":"gop-counts-on-obscure-senate-referee-to-pass-trumps-tax-agenda-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-counts-on-obscure-senate-referee-to-pass-trumps-tax-agenda-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"GOP counts on obscure Senate referee to pass Trump\u2019s tax agenda &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgop-counts-on-obscure-senate-referee-to-pass-trumps-tax-agenda-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2409515&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The current discourse surrounding president\u2063 Donald Trump&#8217;s tax agenda\u2063 centers on\u200d a crucial\u200c upcoming decision by\u2064 Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough.\u200c Senate Republicans aim \u2064too permanently extend the tax\u200b cuts established in 2017, which are \u200cset to expire soon. They propose using a &#8220;current \u2062policy baseline&#8221; approach that treats these tax cuts as cost-free, thereby circumventing traditional budgetary constraints that dictate assessments under a\u2062 &#8220;current law&#8221; baseline. <\/p>\n<p>This proposal, if ruled acceptable by \u2064MacDonough, would require \u2062the Senate and House to\u2064 <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">reconcile thier differing budget\u200c resolutions<\/a>, with the House currently indicating a willingness\u200b to approve approximately $4.5 trillion in \u200dtax changes over \u200ba decade. Though,a full extension estimated at \u200d$4.6 trillion exists, and any discrepancies depend \u200bon MacDonough&#8217;s ruling. <\/p>\n<p>The approach is controversial and faces resistance from both Democrats and some\u200c Republicans who\u2062 fear it could exacerbate\u200d national debt issues.\u2062 Critics argue this\u200d &#8220;gimmicky&#8221; method\u2063 could obscure the true costs of legislation. Additionally, internal divisions within the GOP regarding \u2062spending cuts \u2062and tax offsets \u200bcomplicate consensus on the tax bill.<\/p>\n<p>Senate Republicans remain cautiously optimistic that MacDonough will support their method, which could considerably impact\u2063 future negotiations and fiscal policy.\u200c Though, her decision, particularly if it necessitates\u200c adherence to\u200c a \u2064&#8221;current \u200blaw&#8221; baseline, could reignite disputes over \u200cfunding and requisite offsets. Democratic representatives are already preparing to challenge the validity of the proposed scoring \u200bmethod, \u2062suggesting it could lead to\u200d broader implications for legislative \u2064practices in the future.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">GOP counts on obscure Senate referee to pass Trump&rsquo;s tax agenda<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2027623\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>The fate of President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Donald Trump&rsquo;s<\/a> agenda could rest in the hands of Elizabeth MacDonough, a little-known Senate parliamentarian who will soon weigh the cost of the GOP&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/3331444\/senate-draws-new-battle-lines-house-surprise-budget-vote\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">tax bill<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Senate Republicans, faced with the expiration of their 2017 tax cuts, are pursuing a novel way to make them permanent. They want to treat the price tag as cost-free using what&rsquo;s known as a &ldquo;current policy baseline.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The tactic, which assumes the cuts cost $0 since the bill extends current law, is designed to solve a dilemma in the House, where GOP leadership only gave room for a partial extension: $4.5 trillion across 10 years versus the $4.6 trillion <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbo.gov\/publication\/60271\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">estimated<\/a> by the Congressional Budget Office.<\/p>\n<p>The decision is sure to invite Democratic objections, however, meaning it will be up to MacDonough, the nonpartisan arbiter of Senate rules, to play referee.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The scoring method would represent a stark change in Senate precedent, loosening the tight restrictions that govern reconciliation, a budget process that allows Republicans to sidestep the filibuster.<\/p>\n<p>Until now, reconciliation bills have been scored under a &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/158-democrats-vote-against-bill-to-deport-illegal-immigrant-sex-offenders-but-it-passes-the-house-anyway\/\" title=\"158 ... Vote Against ... to Deport Illegal Immigrant Sex Offenders, But It Passes the ... Anyway\">current law&#038;rdquo<\/a>; baseline that accounts for the full cost of expiring provisions.<\/p>\n<p>But the tactic could be needed for the GOP-led Congress to agree on a compromise bill given the House&rsquo;s narrow margins. Trump has not only asked Republicans to make his 2017 law permanent, but he&rsquo;s also demanding new cuts such as &ldquo;no tax on tips&rdquo; that he promised on the campaign trail.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, House conservatives want steep offsets to blunt the fiscal effect of the bill, which also includes hundreds of billions in border and defense money.<\/p>\n<p>Senate Republicans are projecting confidence that MacDonough will rule in their favor once a tax bill is finalized later this year, likely in the spring.<\/p>\n<p>Still, there is genuine apprehension over the Senate&rsquo;s strategy. Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO), the chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/live-updates\/2025\/02\/27\/congress\/gop-tax-chief-senate-tax-plan-00206442\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">expressed &ldquo;huge concern&rdquo;<\/a> at the White House last week over the bill possibly hinging on the parliamentarian&rsquo;s ruling.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), a member of the Senate&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rep-brady-calls-out-biden-dems-on-infrastructure\/\" title=\"Rep. Brady calls out Biden, Dems on infrastructure\">tax-writing panel<\/a>, told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> he&rsquo;s reluctant to support the current policy baseline approach due to its effect on the debt.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d rather pull back from that,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I do think that we have a huge problem with our nation&rsquo;s indebtedness, and so we need to be very cognizant of that.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>He drafted an <a href=\"https:\/\/subscriber.politicopro.com\/article\/2025\/02\/gop-tax-writer-proposes-dumping-current-policy-baseline-from-budget-00205448\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">amendment<\/a> to strike &ldquo;current policy&rdquo; from the budget resolution in last month&rsquo;s Senate &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/what-is-a-vote-a-rama-the-washington-marathon-loathed-by-senators-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"What is a \u2018vote-a-rama,\u2019 the Washington marathon loathed by senators? - Washington Examiner\">vote-a-rama&#038;rdquo<\/a>; but is open to supporting the approach if the final legislation addresses the debt.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If we&rsquo;re otherwise addressing it, I&rsquo;m OK with it, but you can&rsquo;t ignore our nation&rsquo;s debt,&rdquo; he added, &ldquo;because that&rsquo;s going to ultimately end up impacting, for example, mortgage rates, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-federal-reserve-just-raised-interest-rates-how-will-it-impact-your-family\/\" title=\"The Federal Reserve Just Raised Interest Rates. How Will It Impact Your Family?\">credit card rates<\/a>, car note rates &mdash; it&rsquo;s going to impact people, my people.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>House conservatives, meanwhile, have been reluctant to support so-called budget &ldquo;gimmicks&rdquo; that obscure the true cost of legislation and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/politics\/congress\/republicans-budget-change-deficit-impact-trump-tax-cuts-rcna194015\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">could stand in the way<\/a> of the new approach. At best, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) can afford to lose two votes once all vacancies are filled in his chamber.<\/p>\n<p>MacDonough has stymied both parties since taking over as parliamentarian in 2012. In 2021, she repeatedly blocked Democrats from passing priorities such as a minimum wage hike or Dreamer protections through reconciliation.<\/p>\n<p>Under the budget process, all provisions must directly affect the deficit to qualify.<\/p>\n<p>Republicans are nonetheless operating under the perception that MacDonough allowed Democrats to crack the door open wider than it had ever been. They were able to get consequential policies, such as drug pricing reforms, into what eventually became the Inflation Reduction Act.<\/p>\n<p>For the time being, Senate Republicans have begun preliminary conversations with the parliamentarian on the new scoring method.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I mean, we&rsquo;re not spending more money by letting the tax relief continue, and so I think it&rsquo;s kind of a false argument. I&rsquo;m hoping that the parliamentarian, in her wisdom, makes that same judgment,&rdquo; said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), the No. 4 Senate Republican.<\/p>\n<p>Importantly, Johnson embraced the Senate&rsquo;s scoring method last week as the two chambers tried to smooth over weeks of tensions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The Senate ignored Johnson&rsquo;s desire to pass tax reform in the first half of the year but changed course after he demonstrated House Republicans could adopt a framework on the floor last month.<\/p>\n<p>A favorable ruling from the parliamentarian could help preserve that d&eacute;tente, but if MacDonough forces Republicans to use a &ldquo;current law&rdquo; baseline and record the full cost of the tax extension, it could split open the simmering dispute over how to pay for the bill.<\/p>\n<p>Already, Republicans are at odds over the $2 trillion in spending cuts Johnson accepted to offset the legislation, a number likely to include cuts to Medicaid.<\/p>\n<p>Senate Republicans could overrule the parliamentarian with a simple majority vote, but that step is regarded as a &ldquo;nuclear option&rdquo; that would weaken the filibuster, and Thune ruled out the possibility shortly after he became majority leader in January.<\/p>\n<p>Democrats, for their part, are preemptively messaging against the scoring method. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), the ranking member of the Banking Committee, is leading an investigation into whether there is precedent for the accounting change.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/in_focus\/3334549\/marijuana-josh-shapiro-pennsylvania-budget-push\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong>REPUBLICANS RESIST JOSH SHAPIRO&rsquo;S &lsquo;GIMMICKY&rsquo; MARIJUANA BUDGET PUSH<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The deficit cost of tax cuts is real, even for those who do not like the way the math works. After hardworking Americans paid their rent in December, they still had to budget for rent in January,&rdquo; Democrats <a href=\"https:\/\/www.warren.senate.gov\/download\/warren-letter-re-current-policy-baseline\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">said in a letter<\/a> to the Joint Committee on Taxation. &ldquo;Rent is not free because you paid last month&rsquo;s rent.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>That letter suggested Democrats could use the new method, should it be approved by MacDonough, to extend Obamacare subsidies or child tax credits at zero budgetary cost.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_2027623\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"2027623\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>GOP relies on Senate parliamentarian for Trump&#8217;s tax plan<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2651,"featured_media":2409517,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/thune-graham-senate-1024x591.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[6203,4762,51503,51504,32076],"class_list":["post-2409515","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-gop","tag-legislation","tag-senate-referee","tag-trumps-tax-agenda","tag-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/thune-graham-senate-1024x591.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2409515","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2651"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2409515"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2409515\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2409523,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2409515\/revisions\/2409523"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2409517"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2409515"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2409515"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2409515"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}