WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Senate Republicans appear poised to approve a budget resolution that will serve as the legislative vehicle for their tax reform plan.
The non-binding budget resolution unlocks the reconciliation process, allowing Republicans to pass their tax reform plan with a simple 51-vote majority in the Senate.
While Senator Rand Paul, R-Ken., has indicated his opposition to the resolution for exceeding caps on spending, the measure is still expected to pass by a narrow margin.
Senator John McCain, R-Ariz., has signaled he will vote in favor of the budget resolution, and Senator Thad Cochran, R-Miss., has returned to Washington after an illness-related absence.
Republicans are subsequently likely to have at least the 50 votes needed to pass the resolution with a tie-breaking vote by Vice President Mike Pence.
The vote on the budget resolution will be preceded by a so-called 'vote-a-rama,' when senators are allowed to introduce as many amendments as they want on any subject.
Senate Democrats have signaled they intend to focus on amendments related to the tax reform plan rather than on unrelated hot-button issues.
Three Democratic amendments introduced on Wednesday would block potential cuts to Medicaid, shore up funds for Medicare and prevent tax cuts from benefiting the top 1 percent of earners.
Democrats are also likely to force Republicans to make tough votes on increasing the deficit to pay for the tax cuts included in their plan.
The Senate budget resolution would allow the tax reform legislation to add up to $1.5 trillion to the federal deficit over the next ten years.
Meanwhile, the version of the resolution passed by the House earlier this month called for a revenue-neutral tax bill.
Lawmakers will subsequently have to reconcile the two versions of the measure in order to push forward with tax reform.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX