After meeting with Trump Tuesday, Rep. Brian Higgins, D-N.Y., concluded that the president wanted to play ball with Democrats on overhauling the tax code. "This is going to be a negotiation," Higgins told NBC News.
Most Democrats will find an array of reasons to vote against a Trump tax-cut bill if it reaches the floor: The income tax cuts aren't progressive enough; the elimination of the estate tax is a boon for the nation's wealthiest families; or they don't want to finance a corporate tax cut by adding to the nation's debt. But for reasons of both policy and politics, some moderate Democrats would rather find a way to get to "yes" than to "no."
"He'll peel off a few," Rep. Alcee Hastings, a liberal Florida Democrat, said of Trump's odds of winning moderate Democratic votes.
Of course, the devil's in the details — and Trump intentionally left many out. For example, he would reduce the number of individual income tax brackets from seven to three —12 percent, 25 percent and 35 percent — but didn't set the income levels at which each rate would take effect. And even then, the plan leaves room for a fourth bracket between 35 percent and the current top rate of 39.6 percent.
"I don't expect Democrats to say that GOP tax proposals are dead on arrival, but I expect a lot of skepticism," said Jim Kessler, senior vice president for policy at the centrist Democratic think tank Third Way.
"Many Democrats would like to see a lower corporate tax rate and help for the middle class," he added. "At the same time, they'll be looking at what it means for the deficit and whether top earners get too much of a break. It defies conventional wisdom, but Democrats have been guardians of fiscal responsibility since 1993 and that will weigh heavily in this debate."
Trump may be willing to deal to win Democratic votes — or at least show that he's willing to do so to keep Republicans in line.
"He's transactional," Higgins said. "That's not a criticism."
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