Trump flip-flops on millionaire tax hike amid GOP budget feud

Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News on May 9, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

President Donald Trump flip-flopped again Friday on a controversial tax hike on millionaires as congressional Republicans struggle to reach agreement on a sprawling budget bill.

Just two days after saying he backs higher tax rates for the wealthiest Americans, Trump softened his stance.

Trump conceded in a social media post that the higher tax rate would be politically controversial, citing President George H.W. Bush’s toxic decision to break his “no new taxes” vow in 1992.

“The problem with even a ‘tiny’ tax increase for the rich ... is that (Democrats) would go around screaming,“Read my lips,” the fabled quote by George Bush the elder that is said to have cost him the election (to former President Bill Clinton),” Trump wrote.

“In any event, Republicans should probably not do it, but I’m OK if they do,” Trump added.

Trump’s post amounts to a reversal from a directive he reportedly gave House Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday to raise income tax rates back to 39.6% on the highest earners in the plan to extend his 2017 tax cuts that reduced the highest bracket to 37%.

He proposed the higher rates on those earning more than $2.5 million a year and framed it as a populist messaging tool to help counter criticism about harsh budget cuts, especially to the Medicaid program that serves low-income people.

The mixed messages has already injected more uncertainty into make-or-break Republican talks over Trump’s “one big beautiful” budget bill.

Johnson needs the votes of virtually every single Republican in the House to pass the sprawling bill and send it on to the Senate, which needs to pass the exact same bill to comply with an arcane rule known as reconciliation that allows it to avoid being scuttled by a Democratic filibuster.

A tax hike could be political poison that makes the bill unacceptable to at least a handful of fiscal conservatives, who are also fighting for much deeper cuts in spending.

But the Republican Party historically has strongly opposed any higher taxes, especially for high earners who they believe should be incentivized by lower taxes to make more money and boost economic growth.

The bill is crawling through various House committees. There is no sign of major disputes being resolved, including a bitter dispute with New York-area lawmakers over raising the cap on deducting state and local taxes, or SALT.

_____