Donald Trump signed his tax cut bill on Friday morning in the Oval Office with little fanfare in his final order of business before the start of his Christmas holiday away from the White House.
The president also signed a last-minute resolution to keep the government’s lights on through January 19, averting a partial shutdown.
Trump highlighted a provision that sets aside $4.6 billion for missile defense before he affixed his signature to the bill, saying in a tweet that the funds were ‘much needed.’ He also tweeted that the tax reform legislation was the ‘biggest ever’ cut, repeating a claim that’s repeatedly been disproven.
He’s making his way now to Palm Beach, Florida, where his family has been awaiting his arrival for days at Mar-a-Lago, the private resort he has turned into his Winter White House.
Donald Trump signed his tax cut bill on Friday morning in the Oval Office with little fanfare
The president also signed a last-minute resolution to keep the government’s lights on through January 19, averting a partial shutdown
Trump held a mass celebration on the White House’s South Lawn on Wednesday to hail his tax cut victory as the start of ‘a very special period of time’ in America. He promised them that the reforms would lead to ‘jobs, jobs, jobs, jobs.’
‘We are making America great again!’ he said at the outdoor ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House with Republican lawmakers.
Vice President Mike Pence, who was up late the night before presiding over the final vote in the Senate, declared the bill’s passage a ‘middle class miracle’ and shouted, ‘Merry Christmas America!’
Trump was handed an immediate Christmas bonus of his own as AT&T announced it would give its more than 200,000 workers a $1,000 bonus once the tax cut is signed into law, and Wells Fargo, Boeing and Comcast, which owns NBC Universal, quickly followed suit with boosts for their workforces.
GOP leaders congratulated Trump on the legislative achievement – the first major one of his presidency – one-by-one in remarks that praised him as the greatest executive officeholder in decades.
‘Something this big, something this generational, something this profound could not have been done without exquisite presidential leadership. Mr. President, thank you for getting us over the finish line,’ said House Speaker Paul Ryan.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell likewise said, ‘America is going to start growing again. Thank you Mr. President for all you’re doing.’
‘But for your leadership, we would not be here today,’ House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady piled on.
President Donald Trump proclaimed the GOP tax cut plan a ‘historic victory’ on Wednesday as the House headed to the floor for final passage
‘Something this big, something this generational, something this profound could not have been done without exquisite presidential leadership. Mr. President thank you for getting us over the finish line,’ said House Speaker Paul Ryan
Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the House majority leader, at his turn said, ‘This is a big day for America. This is America’s comeback.
‘Come February check your check, because that will be the pay raise of the vote for Donald Trump,’ McCarthy stated.
Senator Orrin Hatch, the Senate Finance Chairman, effusively said that Trump was ‘one heck of a leader’ and the bill ‘could not have passed without you.’
‘We’re making headway. This is just the beginning,’ the Utah senator who has not declared his intent to run for re-election next year said. ‘I just hope that we call get behind him every way we can and we’ll get this country turned around in ways that will benefit the whole world.’
Hatch said, ‘We’re gonna make this the greatest presidency that we’ve seen not only in generations but maybe ever. God bless all of you.’
The president told lawmakers in his remarks that the negotiation process has ‘been an amazing experience,’ and Republicans have now ‘broke every record’ with the size of tax slash.
‘It was a lot of fun. It’s always fun when you work hard and win,’ Trump assessed. ‘If you work hard and lose, that’s not acceptable.’
HAPPY TAXMAS: That was the White House’s message as it closed out the Wednesday workday after tax legislation passed
The biggest publicity coup for Trump may well be the immediate move by corporate giants to pass some of their winnings to workers.
AT&T said that it will pay $1,000 bonuses to more than 200,000 employees – and promised to make $1 billion in new investments in the United States next year – once the tax reform bill is signed into law.
As part of that bill, the tax rate on corporations will drop from 35 per cent to 21 per cent. Trump previously called the measure ‘rocket fuel’ for the economy.
After AT&T’s announcement, other companies followed suit.
Comcast NBCUniversal said it would award $1,000 bonuses to more than 100,000 workers, ‘based on the passage of tax reform’ and a recent FCC decision to repeal ‘net neutrality’ rules.
The cable and Internet giant also boasted that it ‘expects to spend well in excess of $50 billion over the next five years investing in infrastructure.’
Boeing said it would make a ‘$300 million employee-related and charitable investment as a result of #TaxReform legislation.’
And Fifth Third Bancorp in Cincinnati, Ohio said it will pay $1,000 bonuses to more than 13,500 employees and raise the minimum wage for its workforce to $15 per hour because its tax rate is about to plummet.
Wells Fargo matched that $15 per hour minimum wage hike and said it was prompted by the tax plan. The San Francisco-based bank also said it would make $400 million in donations to nonprofit charities and other community organizations in 2018.
FedEx also showed optimism, with its CFO saying during an earnings call that the package shipping giant will likely expand if the tax cuts lead to larger national economic growth.
‘GDP could increase materially next year as a result of U.S. tax reform. If this occurs, we would likely increase capital expenditures and hiring,’ Alan Graf told investors.
SAY CHEESE: Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE), Sen. Luther Strange (R-AL), Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), and Sen. David Perdue (R-GA) take a selfie during the president’s event on the South Lawn
The Senate passed the GOP’s $1.5 trillion tax cut early Wednesday morning, leaving just one technical hurdle and Trump’s signature as the final steps before the Republican president’s top legislative priority became a reality.
Trump will not be able to sign the bill on Wednesday but delivered afternoon remarks at the White House anyway, where he was flanked 100 or so Republican lawmakers.
He took an early victory lap in his cabinet meeting and in a statement released by the White House just after the final congressional vote.
‘I promised the American people a big, beautiful tax cut for Christmas. With final passage of this legislation, that is exactly what they are getting,’ he said. ‘I would like to thank the members of Congress who supported this historic bill, which represents an extraordinary victory for American families, workers, and businesses.’
Trump predicted that tax reform would lead to an even greater reduction in unemployment, new highs for the stock market and an increase in wages.
‘By cutting taxes and reforming the broken system, we are now pouring rocket fuel into the engine of our economy,’ he said. ‘America is back to winning again, and we’re growing like never before. There is a great spirit of optimism sweeping across our land. Americans can once again rest assured that our brightest days are still to come.’
During an afternoon cabinet meeting, Trump said that the bill will provide ‘a tremendous amount of relief for the middle class, including a doubling of the child tax credit and a nearly doubling of the standard deduction.’
‘That’s going to be tremendous for people. They’re going to start seeing the results in February. This bill means more take home pay,’ he said.