The House of Representatives approved President Trump's tax cut and border plan Tuesday night, giving a major boost to the new administration's 2025 agenda.
All Democratic lawmakers voted against it, while one abstained. One Republican lawmaker spoke out against the president's plan in a 217-215 vote.
The approval comes after an unusual series of maneuvers by House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, who called off the vote after lawmakers were told there would be no more votes that night. He then reversed course, putting the budget up for a vote.
The turnaround came after Mr. Johnson and the second-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives, Steve Scalise, spent hours persuading undecideds to support the plan, a preliminary step to extending the 2017 tax cut passed during President Trump's first term.
The two leaders said President Trump himself had also reached out to reluctant lawmakers about the need to move forward with the $4.5 trillion tax cut plan, which also includes funding efforts to deport immigrants living in the United States illegally, would tighten border security, remove excessive regulations in the energy sector and cover military spending.
"The president has spoken to a number of lawmakers. He has made his intentions known and he wants them to vote and move it forward," Mr. Johnson said. /VOA (A2 Televizion)
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