Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) speaks during Senate Intelligence Committee hearing to answer questions related to Russian use of social media to influence U.S. elections, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., November 1, 2017. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The No. 2 U.S. Senate Republican John Cornyn said on Friday he was confident Republicans have the 50 votes necessary to pass a tax overhaul bill in the chamber.

“We are confident of the 50 and would like to build on that,” Cornyn said.