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Article snippet: Senate Majority Leader MORE (R-Ky.) is hailing 2017 as a year of major Republican accomplishments, dismissing the unpopularity of the Republican tax bill as the influence of “left of center” press coverage. The anticipated passage of tax reform gives McConnell and his party a much-needed triumph at the end of a year in which the GOP has at times struggled to govern. “If you look at 12 circuit judges, a new Supreme Court justice, the regulatory relief and now comprehensive tax reform for the first time in three decades, by any objective standard it’s been one heck of a good year for us,” McConnell told The Hill in an interview Tuesday. The Senate has confirmed 12 appellate court nominees this year, the most during a president’s first year in office since 1891. Using the Congressional Review Act, Congress has repealed 14 Obama-era regulations this year. Some Republicans, however, are worried about polls showing weak public support for the tax bill at a time when MORE’s approval rating is mired at 35 percent. McConnell blamed the bad poll numbers on staunch Democratic resistance and what he called slanted media coverage, predicting the bill will become more popular after it becomes law. “Anytime you come out with a new proposal, at least new to the public, it gets beat up a lot. Most of the press, left of center, hit it pretty hard. Of course the Democrats all doubled down against it,” he said. He said the debate over the tax measure is far from over. ... Link to the full article to read more