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Brian Faler @Brian_Faler

A poorly maintained archive of my stories. Tip line: bfaler@politico. DMs are open. Signal: brianfaler.22

Joined April 2014
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Do it for Trump: Administration presses biz leaders, wealthy people, governors to contribute to Trump accounts. More here: tinyurl.com/3jkkkup6
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Did Trump just raise taxes? His demand that Nvidia and others pay the government 25 percent on their sales into China looks to some a whole lot like a tax increase. Perhaps even more surprising: It's Dem lawmakers, not GOPers, who are outraged. More: tinyurl.com/2shehna2

POLITICO Pro: Don't call it a tax hike? Trump's demand for a cut of Nvidia's China profits raises...

Some Democratic lawmakers say Trump is intruding on congressional authority or may be breaking the law by demanding a price for the chip maker's access to China sales.

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A controversial tax on remittances, aimed at undocumented immigrants, would further shrink under the latest draft of Republicans' megabill. It's a priority for Trump, but sparked worries over unintended consequences. More: tinyurl.com/y5sspx6f
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Alaskan whaling captains score special tax cut in GOP megabill More: tinyurl.com/4nzaurxs
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Small colleges get a big break on the endowment tax under latest draft of Republicans' megabill. More: tinyurl.com/2ntufx7b
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One of the stranger consequences of the GOP bid to use a “current policy baseline” is that it makes a big tax cut for wealthy investors look like a budget saver. More here on how expanding "Opportunity Zones" went from being a tax cut to a tax increase: tinyurl.com/4v6cu2u8
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Rather than costing $7.5 billion — the estimate using conventional budgeting analysis — Republicans’ preferred yardstick shows it producing $66 billion in savings....
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Though GOP lawmakers have spent months bashing Congress’ budget scorekeepers over what they call unrealistic estimates, Republicans are happily embracing the windfall as they struggle to contain the cost of the legislation.
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The "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" -- the title -- may be a goner, thanks to a curious feud among lawmakers where they kill the names of each other's tax bills (and their table of contents too!). “I wanted to make it as difficult for them as possible.” politico.com/live-updates/20…

GOP megabill may not be ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ for long

Senators of both parties have a tradition of stripping the official titles from their opponents’ special budget legislation, and the GOP's megabill is likely facing the same fate.

politico.com
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Republicans are planning to spend $200B on tax cuts this year, before parts of their Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expire later this year. The idea? Boost tax refunds, and the economy, before the midterms. More here on the tax cuts before the tax cuts: politico.com/news/2025/06/12…

Republicans stuff new tax cuts into their megabill, hoping voters will take note

GOP lawmakers are eager to get benefits out to taxpayers ahead of the midterm elections, since most of the legislation would simply extend current tax policies.

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More than a dozen individual and biz tax cuts would be made retroactively available to this tax year, so that people can claim them when they do their taxes in the Spring.
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And people claiming the higher $40,000 SALT cap would get an extra big benefit in 2025. GOPers are rescinding some of the benefit of the higher cap via other provisions in the bill, so the net tax cut is smaller than advertised. But those take-backs don't take effect until 2026.
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politico.com/news/2025/05/23…

House GOP zeroes in on immigrants to help fund tax cuts

The megabill passed by the House on Thursday would strip tax breaks for health care and other benefits that both undocumented and legal immigrants benefit from.

politico.com
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Brian Faler retweeted
Mike DeBonis@mikedebonis
16 May 2025
Tremendous @Brian_Faler joint on all the little industry goodies tucked into the House tax package. Pay your gym dues pre-tax out of your HSA? Gah, Big Fitness wins again! politico.com/news/2025/05/15…

Need a gun silencer? You might get a tax break.

That's just one of the narrow provisions tucked into the House GOP tax bill to rally enough votes, by addressing members' particular requests.

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Republicans never got much credit from voters for their 2017 tax cuts. And the sequel could prove an even tougher sell. politico.com/news/2025/05/02…

Trump’s tax fight may be met with a yawn by voters

The package they are struggling to assemble will largely head off tax increases instead of creating broad, new benefits.

politico.com
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Back in 2017, when Republicans pushed through their original tax cuts, one of their main goals was simplifying the code. Not this time. The word ‘simplification’ is rarely heard these days, with Republicans prepping a list of bespoke tax breaks. More: tinyurl.com/juadd2pz
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And more here on the tax brain drain that's been hitting the Hill, with a wave of influential aides leaving just as the tax debate heats up: tinyurl.com/m5atdj3v
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Brian Faler retweeted
Mike DeBonis@mikedebonis
13 Mar 2025
Big @Brian_Faler scoop on @SpeakerJohnson's new top tax aide. Will be huge player in budget/recon talks. politico.com/live-updates/20…

Johnson taps Boeing exec Curtis Beaulieu as top tax adviser

A former tax counsel for the Senate Finance Committee, he'll replace Derek Theurer, who left for the Treasury Department.

politico.com
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Republicans, struggling to figure out a way to finance an extension of their expiring tax cuts, are turning up their noses at what some GOP vets could be a relatively easy way to save hundreds of billions of dollars. More here: tinyurl.com/ykczy5rv
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$4 Trillion? The price tag at the center of this year's tax debate is almost a year old and, if it were updated, it would likely be a lot higher. R's are fine using a musty number, but that presents D's with an opportunity to make mischief. More here: tinyurl.com/yr38dmp9
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