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Senators fight over #CorkerKickback as tax bill vote nears

The debate rages on as the vote gets closer.

Photo of Andrew Wyrich

Andrew Wyrich

The Senate is expected to vote on the GOP-led tax bill on Tuesday. But debate has sparked online around Sen. Bob Corker, resulting in #CorkerKickback.

The Senate is expected to vote on the Republican-led tax bill as early as Tuesday, but as the vote nears, a fight erupted online about the criticism surrounding the deal.

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The tax bill, called the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,” is being debated by the House of Representatives and is expected to pass early in the afternoon. Following the House vote, the Senate will begin the same process, and a final vote on the bill could come on Tuesday evening.

Some of the criticism of the tax bill has come from Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) who flipped from voting no to publicly saying he would vote yes.

“It’s been really tough, especially because I did think, I really felt like we could have had a bipartisan bill that would have really withstood more fully the test of time,” Corker said, according to the New York Times.

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A debate has raged over Corker’s flip to yes and if it has anything to do with a late addition to the tax bill that would benefit people with real estate holdings, like Corker. The provision has come to be known as the “Corker Kickback” online.

The International Business Times reports that more than a quarter of Republican senators voting on the tax bill will get a tax cut through real estate shell companies. The provision was not in the version of the bill that was voted on in early December.

The “#CorkerKickback” quickly spread online as an outlet for outrage over the tax bill.

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Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tx.) seemed to take umbrage with the idea that the provision was added to benefit certain senators.

“The real lesson of the kick at Bob Corker is how terrified the left is of a bill that could be a popular tax cut that helps the economy and lifts incomes,” Cornyn tweeted, quoting a Wall Street Journal editorial.

Cornyn continued in a series of tweets:

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“Under #TaxCutsandJobsAct the typical family of four earning the median family income of $73,000 will receive a tax cut of $2,058, a reduction of nearly 58 percent. Under #TaxCutsandJobsAct a single parent with one child and an annual income of $41,000 will receive a tax cut of $1,304.50, a reduction of nearly 73 percent. Under #TaxCutsandJobsAct a married couple earning $100,000 per year ($60,000 from wages, $25,000 from their non-corporate business, and $15,000 in business income) will receive a tax cut of $2,603.50, a reduction of nearly 24 percent.”

Corker also responded to the #CorkerKickback chatter.

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He also shared the Wall Street Journal article defending his decision to support the tax bill, a tweet which got thoroughly ratioed.

corker tweet
Bob Corker/Twitter

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With Corker’s support, the bill is expected to pass and head to President Donald Trump‘s desk.

 
The Daily Dot