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Rand Paul and Donald Trump
- President Donald Trump called out Rand Paul on Twitter Friday morning, saying he supported the Republican tax plan.
- Paul responded that he was "all in for tax cuts."
- The use of "cuts" instead of reform may be a key difference that leaves Paul room to defect from the plan.
Sen. Rand Paul on Friday indicated his support for "tax cuts" on Twitter after President Donald Trump mentioned him by name earlier in the morning.
"I'm all in for tax cuts @realDonaldTrump," said Paul, a Republican from Kentucky. "The biggest, boldest cuts possible - and soon!"
Paul has been initially hesitant to support the tax plan laid out by Trump and the Republican leadership because of its projected effect on the federal deficit. The Tax Policy Center estimated the plan would increase the federal deficit by $2.4 trillion over 10 years.
The Kentucky senator also took issue with analysis showing that the plan would mostly benefit richer Americans, with the Tax Policy Center estimating that the top 1% of income earners would receive 80% of the tax plan's benefits by 2027.
Paul's hesitance led Trump to call him out on Twitter, where Trump suggested the senator was supportive of the proposal.
"The Budget passed late last night, 51 to 49. We got ZERO Democrat votes with only Rand Paul (he will vote for Tax Cuts) voting against," Trump said. "This now allows for the passage of large scale Tax Cuts (and Reform), which will be the biggest in the history of our country!"
Paul did vote against the Senate budget resolution Thursday, which contained the proverbial key to unlock tax reform in the form of reconciliation instructions. But Paul appears to be on board with some form of tax change.
Paul, however, said he supports tax "cuts," not reform, which could be a key distinction. The language could leave Paul wiggle room when actual legislation is released.