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Key Republican senator just became the first major defection on the tax bill

15 November 2017 at 21:31
Sen. Ron Johnson said that he would vote against the Republican tax bill, called the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, because it doesn't help small businesses enough.
  • Sen. Ron Johnson said he will not vote for the Senate's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
  • Johnson said that he does not like the process being used to advance the bill — and the benefits for large corporations.
  • This complicates the path forward for Senate GOP leaders, who already have little room for error.

Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin on Wednesday became the first Republican member to publicly declare opposition to the Senate GOP tax bill.

In a statement, Johnson said that the bill — named the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) — gives a lager percentage of benefits to large corporations while shorting smaller, pass0through businesses.

"Unfortunately, neither the House nor Senate bill provide fair treatment, so I do not support either in their current versions," Johnson said in a statement. "I do, however, look forward to working with my colleagues to address the disparity so I can support the final version."

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Johnson told The Wall Street Journal's Siobhan Hughes that the bill, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, said that Republicans would need to seriously change the bill for him to support it.

Here is Johnson's full statement:

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