Brady unveils amendment to GOP tax bill, no changes to health care

Why not? Repealing the individual mandate would likely resurface the same issues that initially sank Republicans' health care earlier this year, making tax reform harder and putting the party's next-best chance for a legislative victory in danger.

Dems' reaction: Democrats were furious when Brady introduced the amendment, arguing they were "blindsided" by the changes. "You make a mockery out of this committee," Rep. Sander Levin (D-MI) told Brady. "You're determined to pass a bill because you haven't done anything of importance all this year."

Other changes included in the amendment:

• Self-created musicians and songwriters' compositions and copyrights will be preserved as capital assets.

• Employees who receive stock options or restricted stock units who plan to exercise those options at a later date may elect to defer recognition of that income for up to five years, if the company's stock is not publicly traded.
• More tailored international rules, including an exemption to foreign affiliates' routine returns and exclusion of acquisitions of property priced on a public exchange.

Go deeper: Tax Overhaul Faces Major Hurdles (WSJ)