Democrats' new spokesman to hammer GOP tax bill? GOP Sen. Marco Rubio says working class left out

Show Caption Hide Caption Trump: America’s economy back and roaring and its people are winning It’s tax day! ...And according President Trump, paychecks are climbing, tax rates are going down and Americans are winning. Veuer's Chandra Lanier has the story.

WASHINGTON — Democrats have found a news spokesman to slam the massive tax cut bill Republicans passed last year: GOP Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida.

In a recent interview with The Economist, Rubio said he's disappointed that the $1.5 trillion tax bill — which he voted for in December — has yet to deliver the relief he says working class Americans need and deserve despite the breaks given to Fortune 500 companies.

"There is still a lot of thinking on the right that if big corporations are happy, they’re going to take the money they’re saving and reinvest it in American workers,” he told the magazine. “In fact they bought back shares, a few gave out bonuses; there’s no evidence whatsoever that the money’s been massively poured back into the American worker.”

Rubio echoed similar sentiments months ago as he fought to include a larger and fully reimbursable child tax credit as part of the final bill. What's new is that Democrats are touting his recent comments as an 'I-told-you-so' moment with important mid-term elections on the horizon.

"We couldn’t have said it any better ourselves," said Matt House, a spokesman for Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

Nevada Democrats pounced on Rubio's comments, using the senator's remarks against Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., who voted for the tax bill and is in a tough re-election battle this fall.

“Sen. Rubio is admitting what’s become clear over the past few months: the Republican tax bill was designed to keep big corporations happy instead of protecting hardworking Nevada families," Nevada State Democratic Party spokesperson Sarah Abel said in a statement.

Some conservatives voiced their disapproval of Rubio's comments, pointing to announcements by some companies who said the tax bill has allowed them to hire more workers and give existing ones bonuses and pay raises.

“It’s disappointing to see Marco Rubio echo some of the false rhetoric of tax reform opponents, and we hope he clarifies his remarks," said Brent Gardner, chief government affairs officer for Americans for Prosperity which helps elect conservative candidates to Congress. "There’s no doubt that the full potential of tax reform will be realized over the long-term, but there’s also no denying the positive impact it’s already having on American workers, businesses and families across the country.”

Read More: List of companies that paid bonuses or boosted pay since tax bill passed

Read More: Tax cut savings flow to company stockholders, trickle to hourly workers

Rubio was sticking to his guns Tuesday.

"Senator Rubio pushed for a better balance in the tax law between tax cuts for big businesses and families, as he’s done for years." the senator's spokesperson, Oilvia Perez-Cubas, said. "As he said when the tax law passed, cutting the corporate tax rate will make America a more competitive place to do business, but he tried to balance that with an even larger child tax credit for working Americans."

Rubio and Utah GOP Sen. Mike Lee spent weeks in the fall publicly pushing for an expansion of the child tax credit, arguing that working class families were being ignored in a bill that cut taxes for millionaires.

With the help of Ivanka Trump, the president's daughter, and South Carolina GOP Sen. Tim Scott, they were able to convince tax writers to increase the credit from $1,000 to $2,000 per child for households earning up to $500,000. They also were able to convince GOP Leaders to raise the refundable portion to $1,400.

It was not the fully refundable $2,000 Rubio had sought but enough of a bump to secure his support for the tax bill which passed 51-48 in December.