The TAKE with Rick Klein
Rejecting what President Donald Trump stands for is not the same as rejecting what he wants to do.
Yes, Democrats remade the electorate, and they did it the old-fashioned way. They scored wins in culture wars and drawing energy they hadn't yet harnessed in the age of Trump.
But the point of it all is policy. As the focus turns back there, Republicans are viewing the results as a wake-up call – with a donor class eager to offer lawmakers a jolt.
"We've got to get our job done," House Speaker Paul Ryan said in responding to the GOP setbacks of Tuesday night.
The policy fight over taxes now becomes even bigger than it was before. Election Day 2017 presented mixed takeaways for a Republican Party taking uneasy cues from a president who has displayed little loyalty either to ideology or the people running in his party.
Democrats will now view the tax fight as a chance to extend a political winning streak. Republicans see delivering on a priority as more urgent than ever – even if their rank-and-file has fresh reason to fear what it means to be in the party in the age of Trump.
The RUNDOWN with MaryAlice Parks
The House tax reform bill costs too much.
That is to say, right in its current form it would not fly under budget rules set up in the Senate. The Congressional Budget Office announced Wednesday the bill would increase the federal deficit by $1.7 trillion dollars over the next decade, roughly $200 billion over what the Senate budget bill had allotted for.
Heeding the president's call, some Republicans are floating the idea of including an amendment to the bill that would repeal of the requirement that everyone have health insurance. They asked the CBO to look into that again, and voila, it turns out scrapping the mandate saves the government about $300 billion. So, in theory they could tack it on, get the number down, avoid headlines about how the House sent the Senate a bill they knew could not work over there and gut Obamacare while they're at it.
The downside, Republicans learned over the summer that health care is complicated and that one addition to the tax bill could bring a whole host of other political risks. Plus, while the House Ways and Means Committee Chair says he wants to get the total cost down, is finagling with numbers worth it when the Senate is writing its own bill anyway?
The Senate Finance Committee says they plan to release language Thursday. Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he did not have "any comment at all" about the House proposal.
"We're going to let them work their way through the process. And, as I indicated, the Senate proposal will be out there for all of you to look at."
The TIP with Benjamin Siegel
House Majority Whip Steve Scalise challenged Rep. Sam Johnson to a race around the Capitol Rotunda Wednesday morning on their motor scooters.
Scalise – who lost the race to Johnson – has been using a Louisiana State University-themed scooter to get around the Capitol since returning to work in September, after he was shot at a Republican congressional baseball game practice in June.
Check out the video: https://twitter.com/SteveScalise/status/928366572342738952
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY:
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"Congratulations to all of the "DEPLORABLES" and the millions of people who gave us a MASSIVE (304-227) Electoral College landslide victory!" -- President Donald Trump on Twitter Thursday, the one-year anniversary he was elected president.
NEED TO READ
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