If there’s one thing Republicans are anxious to wrap up this Christmas, it’s tax reform! And thanks to a late-night Senate compromise, hopes are high that the GOP will do exactly that.

Although it was well after 2 a.m. when Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) turned off the lights, relief outweighed fatigue when his party finally passed a sweeping overhaul of the country’s tax code, 51-49. After plenty of sleepless nights for GOP leaders, in the end, only retiring Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) voted against the 479-page bill — giving Republicans the tiny cushion they needed to move what could be the biggest tax reform in 30 years.

For families who’ve been crushed under the weight of the IRS, the vote was certainly something to cheer about. Finally, Congress is on the verge of doing away with marriage penalties — a goal of FRC’s for decades. Then, in a boost to a concept FRC first developed, the Senate not only kept the House’s bump in the child tax credit but increased it — giving parents back some of their hard-earned money. We were disappointed that Sen. Steve Daines’s (R-MT) idea to give unborn children a tax credit never materialized, along with the House’s push to give pregnant parents the opportunity to start planning for their future kids with the 529 education savings accounts. But unfortunately, those are the natural casualties of the reconciliation process. Unlike the House, which has a lot more freedom to think creatively, McConnell’s party had to work within the tight confines of the budget rules. In both instances, Republicans would have to prove to the parliamentarian that the concepts weren’t overly policy-driven. In the end, it proved too much of a struggle, and they dropped both.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) did manage to salvage some great news on the 529 front by letting homeschooling families take advantage of the program. That in itself was a huge victory for millions of moms and dads who deserve the right to educate their kids the way they see fit.

“As part of this historic effort,” he explained, “we’ve also invested in our children and expanded educational opportunities with the expansion of 529s to include K-12 elementary and secondary school tuition, including educational expenses for homeschool students. By expanding choice for parents and opportunities for children, we have prioritized the education of the next generation of Americans, allowing families to save and prepare for their children’s future educational expenses. Expanding 529s ensures that each child receives an education that meets their individual needs, instead of being forced into a one-size-fits-all approach to education, or limited to their zip code.”

Now the real work begins. Because of the Senate’s strict rules and much narrower majority, the end result was noticeably different from the House’s bill. That could tee up some tense negotiations in conference, where Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) and McConnell will have to keep their fragile coalition together long enough to vote on a final version. The sticking points are major in spots: from the number of tax brackets (the House’s four to the Senate’s seven) to McConnell’s repeal of the Obamacare individual mandate. Obviously, members of the conference team will have their hands full ironing out the wrinkles in tax reform’s next chapter.

For conservatives, there’s also missing Free Speech Fairness Act language in the Senate bill, which would roll back the unpopular Johnson Amendment and finally stop the IRS’s half-century campaign of intimidation against churches and nonprofits. There’s also the charitable deduction crisis, which, if unresolved, could devastate the culture of giving in America. The Heritage Foundation does a great job of summing up the bills’ differences here, but the overall message is simple: For the legislation to succeed, Republicans are going to have to find some common ground — and soon.

They’ll also have to overcome the Left’s misinformation campaign, which the liberal media is all too eager to parrot. For weeks, they’ve been calling the bills an attack on the poor and a reward for the rich. Neither is true, as the government’s own studies point out. Everyone (including the less fortunate) benefit from the cuts, the Joint Committee on Taxation points out. And 137 economists agree. In an open letter to Congress, they explain that the reforms would lead to “to more jobs, higher wages, and a better standard of living for the American people.”

If the bill favors the rich, McConnell says, you could’ve fooled them. “Most of the wealthy people I run into don’t think they’re getting anything. I haven’t run into anybody during this tax discussion who is very successful who thinks they are benefiting from it.” That’s changing, thanks to the opening bell on yesterday’s stock exchange. If there’s one place that’s very fond of Congress’s legislation, it’s Wall Street. The Dow Jones closed on another record high (its 64th this year) thanks to the optimism about the tax package.

Let’s hope the Republicans sent to conference can patch their differences long enough to send their own stock soaring.

Until then, President Trump encouraged, “We are one step closer to delivering MASSIVE tax cuts for working families across America. Look forward to signing a final bill before Christmas!”

Originally published here.

SCOTUS Arguments Take the Cake

The Supreme Court is less than 24 hours away from hearing the case most Christians have been waiting for: Masterpiece Cakes v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. For religious Americans, who’ve been in the fight of their lives for their First Amendment rights since Obergefell, it’s a hopeful sign that the days of persecution against believers like Jack may be numbered.

Like so many Christian businesses, the war on religious freedom came to the Phillips’s front door when two men visited Masterpiece Cakes in 2012 and asked for a same-sex wedding cake. Jack was kind — but firm — in his conviction that he wouldn’t participate in a ceremony that violates his faith. Dave Mullin and Charlie Craig offered a choice gesture and stormed out. Later that day, they turned to social media, launching a campaign to force Phillips into submission. It didn’t work. “We would close down our bakery before we would compromise our beliefs,” Phillips told reporters.

For Jack, it’s never been about the person — but the event. Like other artists, he doesn’t create custom cakes to celebrate every message. He won’t create anti-American cakes, Halloween cakes, or adult-themed cakes. But, like Barronelle Stutzman and others, he does serve every single person who walks through his doors — regardless of who they are, where they’re from, or how they identify. What most people don’t understand is that Jack happily serves customers whether they identify as LGBT or not. In fact, he offered to sell the two men suing him anything in his shop. They declined.

“If Jack can’t make wedding cakes,” his attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom point out, “he can’t continue to support his family. And in order to make wedding cakes, Jack must violate his belief system. That is a reprehensible choice.” Tragically, it’s a choice more Christians are having to make. Finally, the Supreme Court has a chance to rule that the government has no authority to force Americans like Jack Philips to use their artistic talents to celebrate events they morally oppose. And now, with Justice Neil Gorsuch on the bench, we’re more optimistic than ever that the court will uphold America’s long tradition of religious liberty. That wouldn’t just be a victory for Masterpiece Cakes but every Christian suffering under the government’s heavy hand.

For more on Tuesday’s oral arguments, check out FRC’s Travis Weber’s op-ed, which is appearing in newspapers all across America: “LGBT Advocates Seek to Scuttle a Vital Constitutional Right.” You can also join other Americans at a rally on the Supreme Court steps in support of Jack starting at 10 a.m. (ET) today. I’ll be speaking, along with Travis and FRC Action’s Patrina Mosley.

Originally published here.

Rebuilding Faith in Egypt

If terrorists hoped to intimidate Egyptian leaders with their deadly mosque attack, it didn’t work. After the brutal murder of 235 worshipers — first with explosions, then gunfire — Cairo isn’t about back down from its promises to protect religious minorities like the ones mowed down late last month.

The grisly scene has become all too familiar here in the U.S., where Sutherland Springs residents are still trying to piece together their lives from a similar rampage. Now, a half a world away, in a land without the same freedoms, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is doing his best to reassure his people that Egypt won’t back down from its promise to come to the aid of faith communities.

The latest proof? Egypt’s sudden approval of 21 churches’ applications to “restore, expand, and rebuild.” The Christian Post’s Anugrah Kumar reports that the el Sisi government is giving the green light to area pastors and clerics after a 20-year hold on some permits. “A local source was quoted as saying that Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is keen to ‘show the U.S. that Egypt is standing with the Christians and that there is no persecution in Minya governorate.’” The decision is an about-face in some areas, where churches had been closed to help “ease tensions” with Muslims. In other places, it’s an act of defiance in the face of ISIS’s growing threats.

No one who met President el-Sisi in our delegation to Cairo last month would doubt his commitment to greater religious freedom in his land. And while our conversations continue with his administration on behalf of Christians and others, it’s encouraging to see Egypt take bold steps like this one. The U.S. needs to do all it can to help support these transformation religious freedom reforms in the Egypt and the Middle East. The first step would be for the Senate to confirm President Trump’s nominee for Ambassador at Large for Religious Liberty, Gov. Sam Brownback. We have a window of opportunity with governments like President Sisi’s. Now is the time to move.

Originally published here.

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This is a publication of the Family Research Council. Mr. Perkins is president of FRC.