A proposal by US President Donald Trump that includes controversial tax cuts was rejected by the House of Representatives’ Budget Committee on Friday.
The tax and spending bill was blocked after five committee members from Trump’s Republican Party, in a rare show of dissent, joined all their Democratic colleagues in rejecting it.
However, this vote does not mean the end of the bill, as a revised version could be presented to the committee next week.
The bill includes a comprehensive package of measures that Trump claims are necessary to fulfil his campaign promises. One key aspect is extending the tax benefits from his first term - which , critics note, went mainly to the wealthy - as these are set to expire at the end of this year.
To finance these benefits, the president wants to cut social welfare programmes, a move that has sparked fierce opposition from Democrats and some Republicans, who fear that millions of poorer Americans could lose their health insurance.
Conservative opponents of the tax bill argue, for their part, that it would increase the budget deficit, as they believe government spending would not be reduced sufficiently.
President Trump has called for swift action on the bill in Parliament.
In a message posted on his Truth Social platform before the vote, he called on Republicans to unite behind the “great, beautiful bill.”
