[John Sarland, Cnn Correspondent:] now, will repeal of net neutrality lead to innovation or to a traffic jam?
[Whitfield:] All right. In the fast lane and the slow lane with John Sarland there. The next hour of the NEWSROOM starts right now. Hello, again. Happy Hanukkah. Welcome this Saturday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. We're keeping our eye on the White House where President Trump is getting ready to depart for Camp David. He'll be joining Vice President Mike Pence and some members of the cabinet for the weekend. Meanwhile, President Trump is on the verge of bringing up his first major political victory as a final deal for massive tax reform is now on the table. The U.S. Senate and the House coming to terms after some holdouts threatened to derail it. House Speaker Paul Ryan saying the vote could come as early as Tuesday. Here are some of the key details. Despite a pledge to reduce the number of personal income tax brackets, this bill keeps all seven. Taxes will be lower for many in those brackets. The biggest cut is being saved for corporations where the tax rate drops to 21 percent from its current 35 percent. Also, in the bill is a $2,000 child tax credit. That's important because it apparently was key in moving U.S. Senator Marco Rubio's vote from a no to a yes. Individuals will also be able to deduct up to $10,000 in state and local taxes and the exemption for the estate tax would be doubled. Republican senators got their way and the Obamacare individual mandate will be eliminated. I want to bring in congressional reporter, Lauren Fox, in Washington. So, Lauren, good to see you again. It was just six weeks ago that lawmakers got a look at this first draft. There was a lot of horse trading going on to get the votes that they need. Now feeling very confident. Senator Marco Rubio and Bob Corker on board. Are there other potential holdouts?
[Lauren Fox, Cnn Congressional Reporter:] Well, when we talked to Republican leadership, they are feeling very confident about the fact that they will be able to deliver the votes on this signature legislative achievement for the year, something that Republicans have been trying to get to President Donald Trump's desk for several months and nearly a year at this point. So, one thing to remember, Senator Bob Corker coming out in support of this bill was huge yesterday, a major surprise on Capitol Hill. He had previously expressed many concerns about the fact that the bill would add too much money to the deficit. So, the fact that he came out in support of the bill is major. Now, we have to remember, there are some senators who have not said explicitly that they will be a yes. Senators like Susan Collins and Senator Mike Lee of Utah. Now, remember, they are saying they just need to read the bill, they're not necessarily nos. They definitely sound like they're leaning towards yes. But they are not saying at this point how they're going to vote because the bill just came out last night. Obviously, this is a huge massive bill, more than 500 pages. And it takes some time to go through with your staff to make sure everything is the way that you want it to be if you're going to be lending your vote to it.
[Whitfield:] Yes. It takes time to read 500 pages. The nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation says the bill would increase deficits by almost $1.5 trillion. You just mentioned Corker, you know, at first said adding to the deficit would be a big turnoff. He's changed his mind potentially. Are there other Republicans openly raising concerns?
[Fox:] Well, Senator Jeff Flake has said that this can be a concern for him, but he did vote for the bill the last time around and that was a similar estimate that we're seeing now. So, without Senator Corker and if Senator Flake does end up voting for this bill, it's very hard to say that there's anyone left who's scared this bill adds too much to the deficit. It seems like that concern has really been put on the back burner. They really just need to get a major legislative win to the president's desk before the holiday.
[Whitfield:] OK, to make it that Christmas present. All right. Lauren Fox, appreciate it. We'll talk more about this with my political panel. Niger Innis is the national spokesman for the Congress of Racial Equality and Maria Cardona is a CNN political commentator and Democratic strategist. Good to see you both. All right, so Maria goes first. Good morning. Some say it's not reform, but it is a new plan. But regardless, will it be considered a victory for the president if indeed it passes?
[Maria Cardona, Cnn Political Commentator:] It will be considered a victory for the president I think in the short term. And let's be very clear, that's one of the reasons why they want to ram this bill through because they are desperate. They, the White House, and Republicans in Congress are desperate for legislative victory because they have had none. And President Trump promised so many things to all of his supporters during the campaign trail and has not been able to deliver legislatively on one of them except for maybe the Supreme Court justice. So, yes, they are desperate for this victory, but I think it will be a very short-term victory because going into the 2018 elections this, if it passes, this will have been the least popular bill that has passed in the last 30 years, Fredricka, and most Americans do not like this bill. Most Americans understand that it is a big wet kiss to corporations and millionaires and billionaires like President Trump and all of his friends and they don't believe they're going to see any tax cut whatsoever and some families, in fact, many families, are going to see a tax increase in the years beyond 2018.
[Whitfield:] It's curious, you know, Niger, because a lot of lawmakers are now trying to read through 500 pages this weekend. Maybe some citizens are also trying to do the same and try to understand. And already if this is a very unpopular bill, very unpopular Congress and the latest approval ratings for the president, you know, at 33 percent, very unpopular president. You know, how will a win be gauged here if indeed it is passed?
[Niger Innis, National Spokesman, Congress Of Racial Equality:] Well, it's the first tax reform that has taken place in a generation, since 1986
[Whitfield:] If that's all unpopular for the American people
[Innis:] I think
[Whitfield:] an achievement?
[Innis:] I think the jury is out on if this is going to be popular or not. It's really going to depend on the results. I mean, what the bet that Donald Trump and the Congress is making is the same bet that John F. Kennedy made in the early 60s. The same bet that Ronald Reagan made which is that cutting taxes is going to generate economic growth. And there's no question that simplifying the corporate tax by reducing it to 21 percent. But also eliminating over a dozen loopholes that currently exist in our tax code is definitely the bet that they're making and the investment that they're making is that this is going to bring back jobs to the country. That it's going to increase wages and if that comes to fruition, certainly before the 2018, I think the popularity of this agenda and the Trump economic plan will increase dramatically.
[Whitfield:] That's an oxymoron, you know, Maria, to say might there be any surprises. Of course, if you knew there was a surprise, it wouldn't be a surprise. But remember for the latest, you know, health care reform, you know, plan I just recall, you know, Lindsey Graham, John McCain, in the hallway, seemingly that they were unified in endorsing it and then it was John McCain who surprised everybody with a big thumb's down. Might there be a moment like that or maybe the better way to phrase that question is, is there anticipation that there might be another moment like this on that on tax reform?
[Cardona:] I know that clearly Republicans are confident that this is going to pass, but what we have seen about what has happened so far is that you never know what's going to happen on a minute by minute basis, and so anything could happen. If I were to put money on it, I would say it probably will pass. But, you know, this is a bet that they're making, but I believe it's going to be a bet that is going to fall on its face. This is not the same economy that President Kennedy had. It's not the same economy that Reagan had. And President Kennedy, yes, he passed tax cuts but guess what, his focus was on tax cuts for the middle class. This is not a focus on tax cuts for the middle class. This is a focus on tax cuts for the wealthy and for corporations. The other thing is corporations are making record profits. What makes us think that by giving them even more money they are going to invest those profits in jobs and in increased salaries. People who believe that have not seen the history of what corporations do when they have more money. What do they do? They give it to their shareholders. They give it as top executive bonuses. Americans understand that. This is why trickle-down economics doesn't work. It didn't work in the Bush administrations. And every time the past two Republican presidents that were in office drove the economy into a hole trying to focus on trickle-down economics and it took the two Democratic presidents that succeed them to get the economy out of the hole.
[Whitfield:] So, then, Niger, are there Republicans or lawmakers who are hoping that perhaps people won't either remember the trickle-down theory or perhaps they didn't experience it and so that's why they're on board with this?
[Innis:] Well, I beg to differ with my colleague, Maria. John F. Kennedy's tax cuts were across the board as were Ronald Reagan's. When we were all in high school back in the late '70s and early '80s, we had this thing called the misery index, which combined inflation with the unemployment rate and which actually was closely correlated to crime rates. Meaning if the misery index was very, very high, crime rates would go soon to follow. Ronald Reagan and Paul Volcker, the chair of the Federal Reserve at that time, broke the back of the misery index. At one time, the misery index I think under Carter was close to 19 percent. It hasn't been above 10 percent since the close of the Reagan administration and that is because of the dramatic economic revolution that took place and the unprecedented basically 20-year prosperity economic boom. The biggest in world history and our country that took place from Ronald Reagan through Bill Clinton. So, I beg to differ. I think that there
[Cardona:] There was a huge recession I'm sorry, there was a huge recession after President George H.W. Bush. That's why Clinton got elected. You're forgetting history.
[Innis:] There was a blip there was a blip of a recession, she's absolutely right.
[Cardona:] Because of trickle-down economics.
[Innis:] And I would argue because Bush raised taxes because he was blackmailed by a Democratic Congress.
[Whitfield:] There was not the winning argument nor evidence that these large corporations were actually creating more jobs at all. That's what is being promised this
[Cardona:] That's right.
[Innis:] But what is Fredricka, what is evidence is our tax rate for corporations was making us uncompetitive with other industrialized nations that had their tax rate close rate closer to the 21 percent that we're going to get to right now.
[Cardona:] Is that why our corporations
[Innis:] it's going to bring much more jobs back to the United States than overseas.
[Whitfield:] That's the slogan but, Maria, is that going to be the reality?
[Cardona:] Well, look, if our corporations are at such a disadvantage, is that why they're making record profits? Wow. I mean, that's just this does not match the reality, Fredricka. The problem is when corporations make more money, they don't they have not shown recently that they invest them in making in either more salaries, raising salaries, which is what we need, or creating more jobs.
[Innis:] You and I would both agree that it's far better for corporations to be making money by providing jobs here in the United States because the tax rate is much more in line with other industrialized nations than it is for them to go to other countries like Ireland where the tax rate is the lower and then bringing
[Whitfield:] by so many analysts that perhaps it's the shareholders that are benefiting from those new profits, but there hasn't been history that dictates or shows that it has created jobs and that's where we are. We'll find out if things change
[Innis:] We will see.
[Cardona:] And we're at a 4 percent employment rate. That is almost, you know that is a historic low, thank you, President Obama.
[Innis:] Yes, but the wages the wages have not gone up in a couple of decades for the American people.
[Cardona:] That's exactly right.
[Whitfield:] Niger Innis, Maria Cardona
[Cardona:] By giving more money to corporations, there's nothing to say that they're going to
[Innis:] Making us more competitive, Maria. Keep in mind, it's our money.
[Whitfield:] Happy holiday, happy Hanukkah and soon happy New Year. Thanks to all of you. Appreciate it. All right, straight ahead, North Korea firing back in a war of words with the U.S. Plus, is Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on the same page as President Trump when it comes to North Korea?