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| Republican Tax Overhaul Heads to the Senate Floor for Debate | Republican Tax Overhaul Heads to the Senate Floor for Debate |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| • The Senate voted along party lines on Wednesday to start debate on the Republican tax bill, setting the stage for a final vote later in the week. | • The Senate voted along party lines on Wednesday to start debate on the Republican tax bill, setting the stage for a final vote later in the week. |
| • Debate is limited to 20 hours, and the Senate is scheduled to convene at 10:30 a.m. Thursday to continue discussing the bill. | • Debate is limited to 20 hours, and the Senate is scheduled to convene at 10:30 a.m. Thursday to continue discussing the bill. |
| • Republicans are still talking about changes to their tax plan before its final approval. | • Republicans are still talking about changes to their tax plan before its final approval. |
| • Though Republicans sound optimistic, party leaders still do not have firm commitments from enough senators to ensure the bill will pass. | • Though Republicans sound optimistic, party leaders still do not have firm commitments from enough senators to ensure the bill will pass. |
| The Senate cleared a procedural hurdle on Wednesday with its vote to begin debating the tax bill, and early remarks from lawmakers offered a preview of what that debate will probably center on. | The Senate cleared a procedural hurdle on Wednesday with its vote to begin debating the tax bill, and early remarks from lawmakers offered a preview of what that debate will probably center on. |
| “This is an historic day as the Senate begins consideration of tax reform that will help boost America’s economy, that will create more jobs and that will leave more money in people’s paychecks,” said Senator Michael B. Enzi, Republican of Wyoming and the chairman of the Budget Committee. | “This is an historic day as the Senate begins consideration of tax reform that will help boost America’s economy, that will create more jobs and that will leave more money in people’s paychecks,” said Senator Michael B. Enzi, Republican of Wyoming and the chairman of the Budget Committee. |
| Mr. Enzi offered a warning about the coming debate. | Mr. Enzi offered a warning about the coming debate. |
| “You’re probably going to hear a lot of screaming going on in speeches this week,” he said. “Please don’t confuse volume with veracity or truth.” | “You’re probably going to hear a lot of screaming going on in speeches this week,” he said. “Please don’t confuse volume with veracity or truth.” |
| Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the top Democrat on the Finance Committee, offered another kind of warning. | Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the top Democrat on the Finance Committee, offered another kind of warning. |
| “The Senate is 20 hours of debate away from a broken promise of truly historic proportions,” he said. This year, he said, was supposed to be when “the working people of America regained a powerful voice in Washington.” | “The Senate is 20 hours of debate away from a broken promise of truly historic proportions,” he said. This year, he said, was supposed to be when “the working people of America regained a powerful voice in Washington.” |
| “Instead of a strong voice, what they got instead was a big con job,” Mr. Wyden said. “If this Republican tax bill passes, Washington is going to reach into the pockets of working Americans and cut a big check to multinational corporations, to tax cheats and to the politically powerful and well-connected.” | “Instead of a strong voice, what they got instead was a big con job,” Mr. Wyden said. “If this Republican tax bill passes, Washington is going to reach into the pockets of working Americans and cut a big check to multinational corporations, to tax cheats and to the politically powerful and well-connected.” |
| President Trump criticized The New York Times on Thursday in a pair of early morning Twitter posts about its coverage of the Republican’s tax plan. | |
| “The Failing @nytimes, the pipe organ for the Democrat Party, has become a virtual lobbyist for them with regard to our massive Tax Cut Bill,” Mr. Trump wrote in one of his posts. An editorial criticizing the Senate tax bill was published Wednesday online and in Thursday’s print editions. The Editorial Board, which writes editorials, is separate from the newsroom. | |
| The president also accused the news organization of violating its own social media guidelines after the NYT Opinion account shared on Twitter the phone numbers for two Republican senators’ offices. However, as one senior Times editor posted in a tweet, “The president is mistaken.” The guidelines, designed to avoid bias in social media posts, do not apply to the Opinion department’s posts. | |
| “I was a co-author of the expanded social media guidelines. They apply to the NYT newsroom, not to NYT Opinion,” Cliff Levy, a newsroom deputy managing editor, tweeted in response to the president’s post. | |
| The Times echoed that in its own Twitter post. | |
| Mr. Trump himself received criticism for publicly sharing a phone number. He once gave out the cellphone number of Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, during the 2016 presidential campaign. | |
| The complaints from Mr. Wyden and other Democrats carry limited weight because Republicans can — and plan to — pass their bill without any Democratic votes. | The complaints from Mr. Wyden and other Democrats carry limited weight because Republicans can — and plan to — pass their bill without any Democratic votes. |
| Republicans are using special procedures that shield the measure from a Democratic filibuster. Debate on the legislation is limited to 20 hours. When the debate ends, it will be time for a vote-a-rama, a marathon of amendment votes. Eventually, the Senate would vote to pass the tax bill. | Republicans are using special procedures that shield the measure from a Democratic filibuster. Debate on the legislation is limited to 20 hours. When the debate ends, it will be time for a vote-a-rama, a marathon of amendment votes. Eventually, the Senate would vote to pass the tax bill. |
| But before then, the contents of that bill are expected to change. | But before then, the contents of that bill are expected to change. |
| Republicans have been discussing significant revisions to their bill as party leaders try to secure the votes they need for passage. Those discussions will continue on Thursday as the debate plays out on the Senate floor. | Republicans have been discussing significant revisions to their bill as party leaders try to secure the votes they need for passage. Those discussions will continue on Thursday as the debate plays out on the Senate floor. |