Stopping a large tax hike will be harder than you think

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act reduced the family tax burden by $2,000, lifted 6 million Americans out of poverty, and delivered record-low unemployment.

But that doesn’t mean extending expiring provisions will be easy. Economic factors and congressional majorities have changed since the Trump tax cuts were enacted.

The 2017 tax cuts came on the heels of former President Obama’s plan to recover from the 2007 financial crisis — the most anemic economic rebound in postwar history.

Economic growth was slow. Wages and income were stagnant. The labor force participation rate was at its lowest since the 1970s. And private investment was faltering.

The economy needed a jolt

President Trump worked with Congress to create a pro-growth tax cut package rooted in a bottom-up philosophy that emphasized work, investment, and entrepreneurship over government handouts.

And while the economy clearly needed a boost, some positive economic factors, including low interest rates and low inflation, made it easier to vote for tax cuts that favored growth over populism and deficit reduction.

Republicans, who were always going to be forced to carry any tax cut across the finish line, also held a much larger House majority than they do today.

But enacting the TCJA was an uphill battle.

You might recall that the tax cuts were considered dead on multiple occasions — on the day of the final vote.

But thanks in part to a nationwide blitz from Americans for Prosperity’s unmatched grassroots army and its team of experts on Capitol Hill, it ultimately became law and sparked a massive economic boom.

Fast forward to today.

Americans are being squeezed from all sides. After four years of record-high inflation, prices are still too high. Interest rates are punishing families and small businesses, and Washington’s reckless spending is fueling uncertainty.

In fact, the national debt is currently equal to all U.S. economic output — and growing.

Republicans also hold a razor-thin House majority — much smaller than their slim majority in 2017.

This is the most consequential policy battle of 2025.

Letting the TCJA expire would mean a massive tax hike on the middle class and a gut punch to small businesses already battling inflation and high borrowing costs. That’s not sound policy.

And the path forward is difficult at best.

That’s why AFP’s unmatched grassroots army is mobilizing thousands of activists to remind Americans about the immense benefits of these tax cuts, empower them to contact their lawmakers, and thank those lawmakers who support them.

AFP’s Ohio grassroots team recently showed families in Barberton, a town just southwest of Akron, what a tax increase would cost them. As part of the Protect Prosperity campaign, AFP provided $1,500 worth of groceries to local families.

Besides showing families what a tax increase would cost them, the popular event also provided an opportunity for AFP grassroots activists to speak one-on-one with local Ohioans.

AFP’s grassroots army is on the ground in more than a dozen key states across the country, like Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Wisconsin, connecting face-to-face with constituents to help get the job done.

This won’t be easy.

Your representatives need to hear from you.

Let them know you support extending key provisions of the 2017 Trump tax cuts.