Washington, DC (WOAY) – Republican lawmakers on Thursday delivered to President Donald Trump the first major legislative achievement of his second term with the full support of West Virginia’s congressional delegation.
House Republicans voted to approve the president’s massive bill of tax and federal spending cuts. Two Republicans voted against it, but West Virginia Representatives Carol Miller and Riley Moore voted for the package.
The three-trillion-dollar-plus package came after fierce arm-twisting by GOP leaders to win over party holdouts.
The package was approved despite fiscal hawk warnings that it would explode the deficit.
Moderate members also had concerns over cuts of about a trillion dollars from Medicaid.
According to Representative Carol Miller, the bill is a win for West Virginia.
“This bill gives the average working family a $1,300 tax cut and makes permanent the 199A small business deduction to keep our economy humming. This is a big win for our West Virginia businesses. It provides relief to gig workers by ending the Democrats’ absurd $600 1099K reporting threshold and reverts back to the time-tested standard of $20,000 and 200 transactions. It will provide economic relief, secure our borders, and ensure American energy dominance,” Miller said.
However, some West Virginians are criticizing the bill.
West Virginians for Affordable Health Care says cuts to Medicaid could force more than 80,000 West Virginians to lose healthcare and could close healthcare centers.
“West Virginia’s Congressional Delegation now has the disgraceful distinction of voting for and helping pass the largest cuts to Medicaid in history. In addition to historic coverage losses, ten West Virginia hospitals and three nursing homes could be forced to shut down, resulting in layoffs and hurting local economies,” the statement reads.
