President Donald Trump walks to Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on Friday.

President Donald Trump walks to Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on Friday. PHOTO: SAUL LOEB/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES

By James Freeman

Feb. 20, 2018 12:15 p.m. ET

412 COMMENTS

Republicans enacted a tax cut in December and any day now, most of the country will find out about it. News has been travelling slowly because media folk have been diligently cataloging the relatively few examples of Americans who will not receive a direct benefit. But details on the individual and corporate tax reforms have begun to seep out of Washington.

The New York Times reports:

The tax overhaul that President Trump signed into law now has more supporters than opponents, buoying Republican hopes for this year’s congressional elections.

The growing public support for the law coincides with an eroding Democratic lead when voters are asked which party they would like to see control Congress.

The tax cut is already popular among Republicans, adds the Times, and “in contrast with many other issues — including Mr. Trump’s job approval rating — it also appears to be winning over some Democrats. Support for the law remains low among Democrats, but it has doubled over the past two months and is twice as strong as their approval of Mr. Trump today.”

It seems that the more time people have to learn about the new law, the more they like it:

Over all, 51 percent of Americans approve of the tax law, while 46 percent disapprove, according to a poll for The New York Times conducted between Feb. 5 and Feb. 11 by SurveyMonkey. Approval has risen from 46 percent in January and 37 percent in December, when the law was passed.

But the poll results also suggest that the GOP has hardly even begun to reap the political benefits. While an overwhelming majority of Americans has received a tax cut, the survey finds that most people still don’t know it. According to the Times:

Only one in three respondents expects to receive a tax cut from the law.

Even counting those who expect to benefit from higher wages, it seems that only about half the country knows there’s something in it for them. Of course the other half can’t be kept in the dark forever, no matter how many times reporters note that wealthy Manhattan residents without children aren’t getting the best deal. What has to be frightening for Democrats is how the law looks to people once they finally know what’s in it. Reports the Times:

Close to half of Americans now expect some direct benefit from the law — either a tax cut or a salary increase or bonus. Support for the bill is far stronger among that group: More than three-quarters of Americans approve of the law, compared with fewer than a third who don’t expect a benefit or aren’t sure.

Even before this latest survey report from the Times, CNN was reporting last week on the Democratic fright:

Caught flat-footed by the suddenly increasing popularity of the GOP tax plan, leading Democrats are urging the party’s candidates to ignore the day-to-day controversies surrounding President Donald Trump’s White House and focus their campaigns on the economy.

The scramble to reignite opposition to a tax plan that was deeply unpopular when it passed in December but is now seen favorably by about half of voters comes as Democrats fear that their chances of claiming House and Senate majorities in November’s midterm elections are slipping.

That fear may increase as they look beyond recent history and realize that a new president’s party is hardly destined to suffer in a midterm election. Jeff Greenfield writes in Politico:

It’s true that the three most recent midterms have brought gloom to the White House. In 2006, the Republicans lost both houses of Congress. In 2010, the Democrats lost six seats in the Senate and suffered a 63-seat loss in the House when that chamber flipped to the GOP. And in 2014, the Democrats lost nine Senate seats and control of that body, along with 13 more House seats, leaving their party in its worst shape since 1929.

Look back further, though, and you find plenty of examples in which presidents endured only a political flesh wound, if that. In 1962, the Democrats lost only four House seats and picked up two Senate seats. In 1970, the Republicans lost only 12 House seats and gained two Senate seats. In 1990, George H.W. Bush saw his party lose only eight House seats and one Senate seat. And under Bill Clinton in 1998 and George W. Bush in 2002, the party in power gained seats in the House.

Almost nobody is betting on Republican gains in November. But chances are rising that the party will hold its congressional majorities. To paraphrase an old advertising slogan, an educated voter could be the Democrats’ worst customer this fall.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3898547&forum_id=2#35445653)