How the Build Back Better Act Could Backfire on Democrats

House Democrats have passed landmark legislation to give an enormous tax cut to some of the nation’s wealthiest Americans. The bill they approved—President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better Act—also makes dramatic investments to tackle climate change, establishes universal pre-K, reduces the cost of prescription drugs, and substantially expands federal assistance for health and child care. But if Republicans have their way, the part of the nearly $2 trillion package the House advanced today that voters will remember is the windfall for the rich.

To secure the support of moderate Democrats, party leaders included a provision that restores a lucrative tax break that former President Donald Trump slashed in his signature 2017 tax law. The House bill would allow people to deduct as much as $80,000 in state and local taxes—or SALT, in the acronym-addicted parlance of the