President Donald Trump's tax deduction for overtime is a hit with voters and Democrats are struggling to message against it.
Nearly 20 million taxpayers have claimed the tax break, internal data from the Treasury Department obtained by Politico said.
The tax break is more popular than the mortgage interest deduction, Politico reported.
Republicans feel this will help them gain popularity with working-class voters ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
"If I were them, I'd say, 'This is who we used to be,'" said Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa. "They were always the blue-collar people."
Some Democrats support the overtime provision and want to extend it when it expires in 2028 and even make it more generous, Politico reported.
"Trump is far more clever than people want to give him credit for," Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., said.
The Treasury Department told Politico that the overtime deduction has shown up on about 23% of returns and 17% of taxpayers have claimed a new $6,000 per-person deduction for seniors.
"What will be really interesting is do we actually see movement in the number of hours worked because there's an incentive," said Rep. David Schweikert, R-Ariz., to Politico.
"Will this change any of that? It's just the beginning, and it's too soon to do that math," Schweikert added.
Some Democrats are skeptical that many people taking the deduction are not actually eligible for it and that less people will take the deduction.
"We need a more thorough understanding of exactly who is claiming overtime," said Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, to Politico.
"Any of these things like tips or overtime can be subject to abuse, and I'd like to get the numbers out of Joint Tax as to exactly how this is being used and by whom," Doggett added.
Other Democrats believe they should offer more deductions to workers.
"Anything we can do to make life easier for wage workers who need overtime, I'm certainly interested in," said Rep. Brendan Boyle, D-Pa.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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