WASHINGTON – Seeking to advance her family-focused agenda, Ivanka Trump made her first official sojourn to Capitol Hill Tuesday to talk tax policy with Republican lawmakers.
The senior adviser and daughter of President Donald Trump attended a meeting led by GOP Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida. Participants included Sen. Deb Fischer of Nebraska, Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, Sen. Mike Lee of Utah and other lawmakers.
After the session, Trump tweeted: “Just left a productive meeting on the Hill to discuss issues affecting American working families, including childcare & paid family leave!”
Just left a productive meeting on the Hill to discuss issues affecting American working families, including childcare & paid family leave!
— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) 20 de junio de 2017
Rubio said the gathering was spurred by a talk he had with Trump over a month ago, calling it a “first step” for Republicans to discuss tax policies for working families. Topics included a proposal to expand the child tax credit and a tax strategy to encourage businesses to offer paid family leave.
“If we’re going to do tax reform and we should, there should be a discussion and hopefully action on how the tax code can strengthen the family, particularly working families who are struggling with the increased cost of everything,” Rubio said.
.@IvankaTrump and @marcorubio headed to discuss pro-family tax issues. #TeamMarco #taxreform pic.twitter.com/mP6682nWTe
— CHR (@CLINTHREED) 20 de junio de 2017
The attendee list for the meeting did not include any Democrats, who traditionally are more sympathetic to the family policies Ivanka Trump has been working on.
Ivanka Trump has stressed that paid parental leave and support for child care costs are priorities of the administration, but she has signaled flexibility on the approach. Advancing parental leave in the Republican-controlled Congress is considered highly unlikely, but winning some family-oriented tax changes are possible.
Rubio said Trump did not have a specific “ask” for lawmakers. Rather, he said she was “in the input stage, listening to the different ideas and proposals that are out there.”
Rubio and Lee have proposed enhancing the child tax credit, which currently provides a tax credit of up to $1,000 for qualifying families. Fischer has proposed a tax credit for businesses that offer paid family leave.
In a statement, Fischer said she “forward to continuing to work with (Ivanka Trump) on a way forward with policy solutions that can make a difference.”
Trump has indicated she was open to revising the paid parental leave proposal laid out in the White House budget, which would require states to finance the benefit for new mothers, fathers and adoptive parents through unemployment insurance programs.
CATHERINE LUCEY
