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Article snippet: WASHINGTON — With 227 Republican votes, the House passed the most sweeping tax overhaul in three decades on Thursday, taking a significant leap forward as lawmakers seek to enact $1.5 trillion in tax cuts for businesses and individuals and deliver the first major legislative achievement of President Trump’s tenure. The swift approval came two weeks after the bill was unveiled, without a single hearing on the 400-plus-page legislation and over the objections of Democrats and 13 Republicans. The focus now shifts to the Senate, where Republicans are quickly moving ahead with their own tax overhaul, which differs in substantial ways from the House bill. After four days of debate, members of the Senate Finance Committee voted 14 to 12 along party lines to approve their version of the tax package late Thursday night. The approval helps clear the way for the full Senate to consider the bill after Thanksgiving, although it remains to be seen whether it has the support to pass the chamber. “We’ve taken a big step today, but of course there are many more steps ahead,” Senator Orrin G. Hatch, Republican of Utah and the chairman of the Finance Committee, said after the vote. Several Senate Republicans have expressed concerns about the legislative effort, and if Democrats are unified in opposition, Senate leaders can afford only two Republican defections in order to win passage through the narrowly divided chamber. In a blow to Senate Republicans, an analysis of their plan re... Link to the full article to read more