Senate Republicans Pass Sweeping Rewrite Of U.S. Tax Laws

WASHINGTON D.C. (CBS SF/AP) -- Senate Republicans have passed the most sweeping rewrite of the nation's tax laws in more than three decades, setting the stage for a final House vote Wednesday.

The House passed the bill earlier Tuesday. But the Senate had to make minor changes so the bill would comply with Senate budget rules.

The Senate vote was 51-48 on early Wednesday, with all Republicans in favor and all Democrats opposed.

Rewriting the tax code has been a longtime goal of Republicans and an effort championed by President Donald Trump.

Democrats complain that the package is a giveaway to corporations and the rich.

California's Democratic U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris both voted against the GOP tax plan.

In a statement following the vote, Feinstein said, "Senate Republicans just gave corporations and the richest Americans an early Christmas present at the expense of middle-class families."

She said the tax bill "...adds more than $ 1 trillion to the deficit in order to give the top 1 percent a big tax cut."

Feinstein described the bill as "unconscionable."

Senator Harris described the tax plan as "a gift to corporations and the top 1 percent at the expense of middle class families."

Harris said the tax plan "pulls the rug out from the middle class to give billions to those who already have so much."

The tax cuts total nearly $1.5 trillion over the next decade and would take effect in January.

Workers would start to see changes in the amount of taxes withheld from their paychecks in February.

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