While a majority of Americans were fast asleep early Saturday morning (Dec. 2), Republican leaders successfully found a way to get enough votes from the U.S. Senate to pass what has since been deemed as a historic overhaul of the U.S. tax code.
As reported, the most sweeping tax reform bill since 1986 was passed by the Republican-controlled Senate, winning by a vote of 51-49. The bill, if it successfully becomes a law, will greatly impact both every U.S. citizen and every U.S. business, with many taking to Twitter to express their disgust that the bill (complete with last-minute handwritten changes) passed in the Senate and in the middle of the night, no less.
The bill was infamously created without the inclusion of Democrats, with many pointing out that just hours before the bill was voted on, aides were still actually writing the bill itself, making the immediate vote that much more irresponsible.
The tax reform bill largely favors corporations and repeals Obamacare’s individual mandate. Additionally, while it has been said it was designed to favor the middle class, evidence supports the opposite to be true. To put it simply, this bill will greatly benefit the highest-earning Americans and will harm those with comparatively lower annual incomes.
Naturally, President Donald Trump was one of the first to praise the work of the Republican Party, writing on Twitter, “Biggest Tax Bill and Tax Cuts in history just passed in the Senate. Now these great Republicans will be going for final passage. Thank you to House and Senate Republicans for your hard work and commitment!”
The White House also issued an accompanying statement adding that the senators who voted in favor of the bill “did a great service to their constituents” and that the legislation would bring “sustainable economic prosperity and job creation.”
As pointed out by the New York Times, the bill’s passing also marks the first significant legislative victory for the Republican Party since it first assumed control of the House, Senate and White House.
Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) was one of the bill’s largest and most outspoken critics, explaining how he hadn’t seen, throughout his entire career, such a “regressive piece of legislation.”
In the aftermath of news breaking that the GOP bill passed the Senate, many took to social media to react, with one user pointing out, “I woke up this morning to find out I got robbed last night. So did you.”
Take a look at how celebrities and citizens alike are responding to the tax reform bill passing the Senate below.