Senate Republicans block child tax credit expansion bill

A group of Republican senators on Thursday blocked the passage of a bipartisan child tax credit expansion bill, arguing that the bill as it stood did not include enough work requirements for recipients. 

Senators voted 48-44 in favor of the bill, but it needed 60 votes to pass instead of a simple majority. Three Republicans did vote to pass the bill, which would have ended the Employee Retention Tax Credit, raised the child tax credit, and included other tax incentives for businesses, but Independent Sens. Bernie Sanders and Joe Manchin voted against it, per The Hill.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer also voted against the bill on Thursday in a largely procedural move that allows him to call for another vote on the legislation in the future. But Schumer, and Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon blasted Republicans for rejecting the bill. 

“[Republicans] just haven’t been willing, as I said, to actually follow through with their kind of rhetoric," Wyden said. "The rhetoric is that they care so much about kids and family. But then when you look at what happened in February, in March, in April, in May, in June — you just go on and on — they haven’t been there."

The legislation already passed the Republican-led House in January. 

Republican Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo, who is the ranking member on the Senate Finance Committee, blasted Democrats for bringing the bill to a vote just before the August recess, claiming that Democrats have been aware of the GOP's concerns regarding the bills for months.

“There is no more obvious show-vote than the one … today, immediately before the August recess,” the senator said. “One would think the Senate Republican requests for a Finance committee markup on this bill would have been well received. Instead, those requests, which began in January, have continued to go ignored."

He added that Democrats forced the vote in the hopes of painting a false narrative that Republicans do not support "small business, children or alleviating poverty," ahead of the 2024 elections.

Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Democrat, said the vote proved that some Republicans were against tax credits that helped ordinary people.

“The next time that I hear them talking about the need to cut taxes, I’m going to ask my colleagues how did you vote today? How did you vote when you had an opportunity to provide tax relief for ordinary people? Maybe the issue is not so much tax cuts — as for whom?” Warnock said.

Republican Sens. Josh Hawley of Missouri, Rick Scott of Florida, Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma did vote in favor of the tax credit.

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.