GOP Under Pressure as Tax Reform Deadline Approaches

Republicans face pressure from conservatives to reach their August deadline for implementing tax reforms.

Some of President Donald Trump's campaign advisers, Steve Forbes, Larry Kudlow, Arthur B. Laffer and Stephen Moore, wrote a column for The New York Times on Wednesday, asking "Why Are Republicans Making Tax Reform So Hard?"

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told the Financial Times in a Monday interview that the goal he set for passing a tax reform bill in August is "highly aggressive to not realistic at this point."

The co-founders of the Committee to Unleash Prosperity wrote, "In the aftermath of the health care blowup, President Trump and the Republicans need a legislative victory. Tax reform probably should have gone first, but now is the time to move it forward with urgency."

They add: "the financial markets and American businesses are starting to get jittery over the prospect that a tax cut won't get done this year. A failure here would be negative for the economy and the stock market and could stall out the ‘Trump bounce' we have seen since the president's election."

Moore told The Hill that the group wrote the op-ed to "focus the White House on what we can get done." Republicans need Democrats if they want a comprehensive bill, as "it's almost impossible to do broad-based tax reform with just one party signing on to it."

Trump said Tuesday, "we're in very good shape on tax reform. We have the concept of the plan. We're going to be announcing it very soon," while in Wisconsin, according to CNBC. 

"But healthcare, we have to get the healthcare taken care of, and as soon as healthcare takes care of we are going to march very quickly," he continued. "You're going to watch. We're going to surprise you. Right, Steve Mnuchin? Right?"

• Paul Ryan Sees Long Battle Over Tax Reform
• Trump Promises Wins on Healthcare, Tax Reform, Infrastructure