President Donald Trump has told senior congressional leaders that he wants to name the forthcoming tax overhaul bill “the Cut Cut Cut Act,” two senior administration officials told ABC News.
Less than 24 hours before the bill is slated to be revealed, there is still dispute over the name, according to a senior congressional aide and a senior White House official.
The sources said it has been decided that the Ways and Means Committee will have the final say over the name.
Still, behind closed doors, there has been back-and-forth between House Speaker Paul Ryan and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady about the name of the bill, including multiple phone calls in the past week.
Ryan initially kicked the naming over to Trump because of his knack for branding, according to a senior Hill aide.
Trump has been insistent that the bill be called the Cut Cut Cut Act, according to the administration officials.
Ryan and Brady have pushed back on the name of the bill. However, Trump has held firm.
Internal White House polling showed that Americans respond more favorably to language that highlights tax cuts over tax reform, according to a senior White House official.
“At the end of the day, this will be known as the Trump tax cuts,” the senior Hill aide said.
Brady’s and Ryan’s offices declined to comment.
The White House has not yet responded to ABC News’ request for comment.
A senior aide in the speaker’s office called the branding of the bill a “total nonissue.”
Asked whether it’s unusual for the White House to take a role in the branding of legislation, the aide explained that “with a Republican president, it seems you’d want to have involvement.”
“The fact that he wanted to name the bill, that is hilarious and perfectly illustrates how — in things both large and small — the Hill can’t quite figure out Trump,” said a person with direct knowledge of the dispute.
Congress is set to reveal its much anticipated tax overhaul plan on Thursday, even though many details are still being ironed out, such as the threshold for curbing state and local tax deductions, limits on tax-exempt contributions to retirement plans like 401(k)s, child tax credits and property tax deductions.
ABC News’ Jonathan Karl contributed to this report.
