UPDATE | House tax panel adopts GOP changes after day of bickering

8:45 p.m.

WASHINGTON (AP) — After a day of partisan bickering over whether the Republicans' sweeping tax plan would truly help the middle class, a key House panel on today approved late changes. Lawmakers restored the tax exemption for employees receiving child care benefits from their companies, but also put new requirements on a tax credit used by working people of modest means.

The House Ways and Means Committee voted 24-16 along party lines to adopt the amendment from its chairman, Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas. The changes were made to the complex GOP tax legislation put forward last Thursday.

The vote on the amendment capped a rancorous marathon session in which Republicans and Democrats argued heatedly over the nearly $6 trillion plan. Democrats repeatedly lodged objections to the bill, especially to its limits on prized deductions for homeowners and its repeal of the child adoption credit and the deduction for medical expenses.

It was the first of what are expected to be several days of work on the bill, as Republicans drive to push legislation through Congress and to President Donald Trump's desk by Christmas.

Republicans focused on findings by Congress' nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation that the bill would lower taxes across all income levels over the next several years.

"Clearly this is helping real people. It's helping teachers, it's helping students, it's helping struggling families that are living paycheck to paycheck," said GOP Rep. Erik Paulsen of Minnesota.

Democrats returned repeatedly to a section of the analysis showing taxes would actually go up beginning in 2023 for some 38 million taxpayers or families making $20,000 to $40,000 a year.

3:52 p.m.

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans and Democrats bickered heatedly today over whether the GOP tax bill truly helps the middle class, as the Ways and Means Committee kicked off a marathon session to amend and vote on the far-reaching legislation President Donald Trump hopes to sign into law by year's end.

Republicans focused on findings by Congress' nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation that the bill would lower taxes across all income levels over the next several years.

"Clearly this is helping real people. It's helping teachers, it's helping students, it's helping struggling families that are living paycheck to paycheck," said GOP Rep. Erik Paulsen of Minnesota.

Democrats returned repeatedly to a section of the analysis showing taxes would actually go up beginning in 2023 for some 38 million taxpayers or families making $20,000 to $40,000 a year.

"There are a lot of people expecting a tax cut who would be big losers under this bill," proclaimed Democratic Rep. Bill Pascrell of New Jersey. "This is a joke and you've got to face up to it."

At stake is whether the GOP will succeed in passing the most sweeping rewrite of the tax code in decades, which would be a major achievement for congressional Republicans and Trump after a year largely devoid of legislative wins.

And looking ahead to 2018 midterms where Democrats will aim to wrest back control of the House from the GOP, each side is trying to win the political debate over who is truly looking out for middle-class Americans.

The legislation adds $1.5 trillion to the ballooning national debt, delivers a major tax cut to corporations, and repeals the estate tax, which would benefit a tiny percentage of the wealthiest families in the country.

It also simplifies the loophole-ridden tax code by collapsing today's seven personal income tax brackets into four, nearly doubles the standard deduction used by people who don't itemize, and increases the child tax credit, an element championed by first daughter Ivanka Trump.

Despite the various analyses, Republicans argued vociferously the legislation is targeted toward the middle class.