This week saw Republican and Democratic lawmakers in the House and Senate come together to support a bipartisan tax bill.

Yet as Axios reported on Monday, the proposal has led to bitter divisions with the GOP as well as animosity towards Speaker Mike Johnson.

Blue state Republicans angry over SALT cap

Put together by House Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith and Oregon Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden, the legislation bolsters the child tax credit and providse research and development credits for businesses.

Axios noted that complaints were voiced by New York Republican Rep. Mike Lawler and other blue state representatives over the fact that the bill does not raise the State and Local Tax deduction (SALT) cap.

New York House Republicans scored a win today, strong-arming leadership into a standalone tax cut bill for married households. https://t.co/Q3aNAZm1iC

— Axios (@axios) January 31, 2024

The SALT deduction allows those who reside in high tax jurisdictions like New York and California to offset some of their state and local tax expenses when they file their federal returns.

Conservatives fear illegal aliens could claim Child Tax Credit

North Dakota Republican Rep. Kelly Armstrong is one of the bill's supporters, and she told Axios, "I understand these guys' frustration, both political and policy wise."

"But I think at the end of the day you've got to try and get as many votes as you can otherwise you're not gonna have any chance of movement in the Senate," she added.

Meanwhile, Axios also pointed out that some conservatives are also dissatisfied with the proposal Smith and Wyden negotiated.

They point to language concerning the Child Tax Credit which does not require a parent to have a Social Security number, something which could result in illegal aliens receiving money.

Johnson calls bill "a good example of how Congress is supposed to make law"

Fox News reported that for his part, Johnson defended the bill in a statement on Wednesday, saying, "This bottom-up process is a good example of how Congress is supposed to make law."

"The Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act is important bipartisan legislation to revive conservative pro-growth tax reform," he declared.

"Crucially, the bill also ends a wasteful COVID-era program, saving taxpayers tens of billions of dollars," the speaker pointed out.

Johnson added that "Chairman Smith deserves great credit for bringing this bipartisan bill through committee with a strong vote of confidence, and for marking up related bills under regular order earlier in this Congress."