Free Republic

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When Republicans tried to repeal and replace Obamacare over the summer, they acted like “a bunch of free range chickens", said Republican Senator John Kennedy. "Everybody was upset, tired, mad, people drawing lines in the dirt." Not this time. Republican leader Mitch McConnell and the rest of his party's Senate leadership brought party members into line this week and finally won passage of a sweeping tax overhaul early on Saturday. Late arm-twisting and deal-sweeteners for wavering lawmakers allowed them to push through legislation that aims to slash corporate taxes and cut personal taxes.

Republicans insist their tax cut bill will benefit workers, though the legislation has few provisions that directly benefit people with modest incomes in the long run. Instead, the core of the bill is a huge cut to corporate taxes, bringing the top rate down from 35 to 20 percent. Republicans say workers will be better off if corporate executives and shareholders have more money. “If they’re making money, they invest that money, they create more opportunities, more jobs, more research,” Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) told HuffPost. A number of top CEOs, however, have signaled they plan to reward their investors...

FINAL UPDATE - The votes are in, and the ayes have it.  After a marathon evening of debating and considering amendments, the US Senate has approved the GOP's tax reform bill, which would simplify the tax code and cut taxes for the vast majority of American households, small businesses and corporations.  Every Republican voted yes, except for Tennessee's Bob Corker.  Democrats uniformly voted no.  This is a big legislative victory for the GOP, which overcame a great deal of ferocious opposition -- much of it rooted in misinformation -- to pass the legislation.  Up next, a conference committee with the...

"With 51 Republican votes, the Senate narrowly approved a massive bill early Saturday that would cut taxes for many Americans, nearly double the standard deduction and dramatically reduce the corporate rate — all while adding more than $1 trillion to the deficit over the next decade. Senate Republicans passed the measure just hours after having to rewrite the legislation Friday evening, providing them with their first major legislative win of the year. GOP lawmakers scrambled to revise their bill after the parliamentarian ruled the deficit trigger — a necessary component to sway key lawmakers to get on board with the...