mary bruce, abc news, capitol hill. >> that story does beg the question, what sort of sneakers does mary she is always moving. >> moving. >> the white house revealed plans to dramatically overhaul the tax code. the blueprint outlined in just one page, calls for taxes on big corporations and small businesses to plunge from 35% to 15. it also promises to cut taxes for lower and middle-income americans. and simplify the tax code. now the number of tax brackets reduced from 7 to 3. 10%, 25%, 35%. >> the overall economic plan, consists of massive tax cuts and tax reform. regulatory relief. and renegotiating trade deals. and with that, we will unlock the economic growth that has been held back for too long in this country. >> so the treasury secretary offered no details on how the plan would be paid for. and he is not saying how it would personally affect president trump. and his business empire. he did say the president has no plans of releasing his tax returns. and, mr. trump is not pulling out of nafta it turns out. at least for now. after speaking with the president of mexico and the prime

it will be fixed. >> mary bruce live with us tonight from capitol hill. many americans when they hear that some of these lawmakers are planning a new way to repeal and replace those lawmakers, their insurance would be exempt. >> david, lots of concern about this. lawmakers insist they won't get special treatment. the political pressure is on the moderates to see if they can back their own party's plan. david. >> mary bruce, thank you >>> we turn now to a developing headline at this hour, a dangerous standoff after a state trooper was shot while on the job. delaware state trooper. shot in a parking lot of a grocery store. here's abc's gio benitez >> reporter: tonight, a man police believe shot and killed a delaware state trooper appears >> they're trying to establish communication with him. >> shots going off in the neighborhood. >> there was a s.w.a.t. team. >> police said the trooper approached a suspicious vehicle with two people inside when one of the two got outside, firing shots, hitting the trooper. the suspect taking off. >> he ran for seven, eight

this will contribute to the tyranny of the majority. >> so let's bring mary bruce live from capitol hill tonight. this now paves the way for a final vote on neil gorsuch tomorrow. >> david, now that the path is clear the senate is in its final round of debate. democrats are still speaking out on the floor, but it's too late. the senate is expected to vote and confirm neil gorsuch tomorrow. david. >> mary bruce, thank you. >>> there's still much more ahead on "world news tonight" this thursday -- the severe storm moving ahead. the system making its way into the northeast. at least 13 reported tornadoes already. 50 million americans bracing for dangerous weather tonight. ginger zee standing by live with the new track tonight. >>> also tonight -- the passenger plane scare, the discovery in the luggage that kept passengers on the ground for hours. >>> and tonight, we celebrate an american great. there was only one don rickles. back in a moment. ...nerve pain shoots and burns its way into your day...e ...i hear you. when that pain makes simple errands simply unbearable... ...i hear you. i hea

abc's mary bruce asked them about it. >> reporter: tonight, a possible breakthrough in republican efforts to overhaul obamacare. the ultraconservatives who blocked the first attempt, now giving a new compromise their stamp of approval. >> what made you change your mind? >> uh, the amendment, we got states to opt out of some of the regs. >> reporter: the new version would let states opt out of the popular obamacare requirement that plans cover basic health services. it could also gut protections for people with pre-existing conditions. something the president once promised not to touch. >> are you going to make sure that people with pre-conditions are still covered? >> yes, because it happens to be one of the strongest assets. >> reporter: the plan's supporters insist those with pre-existing conditions would be protected in other ways. >> it's all covered. >> reporter: but one group of people who may not have to worry -- members of congress. these new changes would not apply to them. under the new republican plan, they are exempt for now. >> what about this exemption? if this plan is good

mary bruce with us live from capitol hill. as we heard, a lot of debate there over whether taxpayers will pay for the wall. at least at first. how does congress resolve this? >> reporter: one thing that both sides agree on, no one wants to see a government shutdown. that doesn't necessarily mean that a deal will be reached this week. they'll likely pass a short-term extension to buy them some more time to negotiate. david. >> mary bruce live on capitol hill. >>> north korea upping the ante with the united states with a new and troubling move tonight. taking an american teacher in to custody as he was about to return home. and the new threat to sink that u.s. carrier group. soon to arrive off its shores. president trump in a new round of phone calls with china and japan and a rare meeting with the u.n. security council at the white house. underscoring the urgency tonight. abc's bob woodruff in north korea. >> reporter: tonight, american tony kim remains in custody. the 58-year-old professor arrested in north korea while trying

abc's mary bruce on the case. >> reporter: the investigations are piling up. the pentagon's top watch dog now examining whether the president's first national security adviser, michael flynn, broke the law. at issue. >> his ties to russia. his lack of honesty with the american people. >> the pentagon telling congress it has initiated an investigation to deter men whether flynn failed to obtain required approval before accepting thousand of dollars in business from a foreign government. payments including the $45,000 he received to attend this moscow gala in 2015. even shaking hand with president putin. democrats the year before that russia trip, flynn was specifically warned that foreign compensation requires advance approval. >> lock her up, that's right. yep, that's right. lock her up. >> reporter: during the campaign, flynn was a steadfast trump supporter. insisting hillary clinton belonged in prison. now, democrats are accusing the white house of covering up for him. asking why the trump administration is refusing to turn over documents, surrounding his hi

let's go live to mary bruce at the white house. mary, what have you learned? >> reporter: david, these are two of the officers that the intruder slipped before spending a whopping 15 minutes undetected here on the white house grounds. now, the president was at home in the residence at the time when 26-year-old jonathan tran triggered several alarms, peered through the windows and even rattled one of the door handles, before finally being detected. now, at the time, the president said the secret service did a fantastic job in responding. but tonight, abc news has learned that two of these officers who failed to detect the fence jumper are now out of the job. the secret service continues to review this incident. david. >> mary bruce with the breaking headline there. >>> for the first time tonight, we're hearing from the family of that doctor who was dragged off of a united flight. we have new details on his condition. his daughter and attorney revealing he suffered a concussion, lost some of his teeth and has a broken nose. they sayll reconstructive surgery. the

>> thank you very much. >> mary bruce with us live tonight from capitol hill. mary, we're hearing from general flynn's lawyer tonight and he's insisting that flynn told the russia. >> he briefed them before and after that visit to moscow. but they've seen no evidence that he asked for approval or disclosed that he received thousands of dollars. >> mary, thank you. >>> next tonight a major new development involving united airlines and what the airline might pay you if you're bumped from your seat. just as we learned about a settlement now with that passenger who was dragged off the plane. also tonight, following another incident abroad another plane. the plane continued to sit on the tarmac a passenger asking to use the bathroom. then everyone had to get off the plane. here's rebecca jarvis. >> after that united airlines inincident seen around the world, the airline late today agreeing to a settlement. paying the passenger dragged off th undisclosed sum. calling it an amicable resolution. abc news was the first to sit down with united airlines ceo. telling us ch

>> thank you very much. >> and mary bruce with us live tonight from capitol hill. mary, we're hearing from general flynn's lawyer tonight and he's insisting that flynn told the pentagon about that visit to russia. >> david, flynn's lawyer is still insisting that he did brief the pentagon before and after that trip to moscow. but the pentagon said they have looked through their records and they see no evidence that flynn asked for approval and disclosed that he received thousands of dollars. >> mary, thank you. >>> next tonight, a major new development involving united airlines and what the airline might now pay you if you're bumped from your seat and you voluntarily give it up. just as we learned today about a settlement now with that passenger who was dragged off the plane. also tonight, we're following another incident aboard another plane. when a passenger said he needed to use the bathroom, as the plane continued to sit on the tarmac. he did and then eventually everyone had to get off the plane. here's rebecca jarvis. >> reporter: tonight, less than three weeks

let's bring in abc's mary bruce who's also in washington and covers the capitol for us. mary, what gives? >> reporter: dan, over these past 100 days, the negotiator in chief has been struggling to seal the deal with congress even though as you mentioned the republicans are in control of capitol hill. the president has yet to win a single legislative victory. that doesn't mean there hasn't been plenty of activity. republicans have been busy but their goals keeping running into a harsh political reality, the divisions within theirwn they've been working for weeks to gain enough support to fulfill their pledge to repeal and replace obamacare, but they keep coming up short. the divisions so deep they're threatening the president's legislative priorities. >> so what comes next here? how does the president navigate this relationship with congress and get his own party to come together and move forward? >> reporter: despite the slow start, republicans insist the best is yet to come. on health care there have been signs of progress recently, and if they can manage to get that don

. >> reporter: abc's mary bruce finds that depends who you ask. >> if one looks at what he promised to do in the course of a campaign, it's pretty much a dumpster fire. >> reporter: that's a democrat. now listen to a republican. >> how would you grade what you've seen so far? >> i'd give him an "a." trump is turning things around, making business exciting again, capitalism is a good thing, rate reduction, wage rates go up, everyone's happy again and we're in nirvana. >> reporter: either a dumpster fire or nirvana. that pretty much sums up how polarizing these first 100 days have been. has washington figured out donald trump? >> no, donald trump remains a mystery to not just washington, i think to the country. a lot of voters think they know who he is, continue to love the fact that he's not a washington person. >> reporter: today the national rifle association gave him a warm reception in atlanta. >> only one candidate in the general election came to speak to you, and that candidate is now the president of the united states standing before you again. >> he's the first president to be h

abc's mary bruce asked for an explanation. >> what about this exemption? if this plan is good enough for the american people, shouldn't it be good enough for the congress? >> it should be, i agree. >> you're going to make a change? >> yes. >> that was congressman tom mcarthur who worked on amending the bill with conservatives. some moderate conservatives still not on board with the plan so the fate of the measure remains uncertain. >>> breaking news, residents of syria's capital were shaken out of bed this morning by a massive explosion. you see the scenes just coming in this morning. reports from the middle east say it was the result of an air strike by israel's military. the target is said to be an arms supply hub armed by he zbollah. >> now for a look at your weather. a severe storm system is stretching from the gulf coast up the canadian border. strong storms from that system blew through russellville, arkansas yesterday and thousands of people were without power because of downed trees and plenty of other damage. it was also winter again in aberdeen,

here's mary bruce. >> reporter: tonight, as president trump approaches day 100, he's forced to deal with what happened on day 24, the firing of his first national security adviser, general michael flynn. today, a turning point. the top republican and democrat on the house oversight committee emerging in agreement, saying flynn failed to disclose his business dealings with russia and likely broke the law. >> as a former military officer, you simply cannot take money from russia, turkey, or anybody else. and it appears as if he did take that money. it was inappropriate, and there are repercussions for the violation of law. >> reporter: in 2015, flynn received $45,000 to appear at this moscow gala for the russian propaganda network rt. that's flynn shaking hands with russian president vladimir putin. flynn also received more than $500,000 lobbying on behalf of the turkish government. for that, he was recently forced to register as a foreign agent. >> general flynn has an obligation to proactively seek and obtain permission, and it doesn't appear as if he did it. >> reporter: so you think he

here's mary bruce. >> reporter: on capitol hill today, vice president mike pence stepping in to bring healthcare reform back from the dead. is healthcare going to get done this week? what makes this time any different? the white house is now trying to strike a deal with the freedom caucus, those ultra-conservative members who killed the first bill. president trump attacking them ever since. but now, eager for a win, the white house seems to be putting on the table something the president vowed not to touch. >> when you replace it, are you going to make sure that people with preconditions are still covered? >> yes. because it happens to be one of the strongest assets. >> reporter: today, the white house is considering effectively doing away with that provision. people with pre-existing conditions could see their healthcare costs skyrocket. also on the chopping block, the requirement that insurance companies cover essential benefits like wellness visits, mental health treatment, maternity care and even ambulances. now, individual states could opt out. is healthcare reform back on? >> ye

mary bruce with us live from capitol hill. as we heard, lot of debate over whether taxpayers will pay for the wall sf. >> one thing that both sides agree on, no one w government shutdown. this doesn't necessarily mean that a deal will be reached this week. they'll pass a short-term extension to buy them some more time to negotiate. >> north korea upping the ante with the united states with a new and troubling move tonight. taking an american teacher into custody as he was about to return home. and the new threat to sink that u.s. carrier group. president trump in a new round of phone calls with china and japan and a new round of meeting with the u.n. security council. abc's bob woodruff in north korea. >> reporter: tonight, american tony kim remains in custody. the 58-year-old professor arrested in north korea while trying to leave the country. he has yet to be charged with a crime. he is one of three americans being held. >> please save my life. >> reporter: the other two serving lengthy prison sentences. tensions between the

. >> mary bruce has more on changes under consideration. >> reporter: on capitol hill, vice presidenteform back from the dead. >> what makes this any different? >> reporter: the white house is now trying to steak a deal with the freedom caucus. those ultraconservative members who killed the first bill. president trump attacking them ever since. now eager for a win, the white house seems to be putting on the table something the president vowed not to touch. >> when you replace it, are you going to make sure that people with preconditions, still covered. >> yes, it happens to be one of the strongest assets. >> reporter: the white house is considering effectively doing away with the provision. people with pre-existing conditions could see their health care costs skyrocket. also on the chopping block, require that insurance companies cover essential benefits. like wellness visits. mental health treatment, maternity care and ambulances. now, individual states could opt out. >> so what do you think health care reform back on? >> yes it is. >> republicans know the clock is ticking with membe

i want to go to mary bruce. s and over the fact the republicans couldn't give president trump his pick. justice gorsuch is confirmed with a 55/45 vote. what is the fallout? >> reporter: this was the president's first big win in congress but it came at a steep political price as you mentioned democrats last week blocking the vote. that meant that republicans in order to get gorsuch confirmed changed the rules so they could confirm him by a majority vote. that move is known as the nuclear option. there was lots of disagreement about taking the step in congress but the one thing both parties can agree on it is likely to have a lasting impact right here on the supreme court going forward. even republicans who ultimately backed the move were hesitant about it. many raising concerns it would lead to justices going forward that are more ideological george. >> let's get to terry moran. justice gorsuch is the youngest new justice since clarence thomas back in the 1980s and as we were talking about how conservatives hoping

. >> mary bruce abc 7 news, washington. >>> now republicans and democratic are working on a last-minute budget plan to prevent a government shut down and funding for president trump's border wall will not be in it. we have the latest from washington. >> president trump insisted he's not backing down from his number one campaign promise. >> the wall's going to get built folks in case anyone has questions. >> but it's not going to get built right away. >> whose going to pay for the wall? >> mexico. >> mexico says they won't pay and now the president is backing down that congress start paying for the wall now. it's part of his efforts to cut a deal with democratic to avert a government shutdown. >> it's really good new that's the president seems to be take willing t taking the wall off the table in the negotiations. >> so the president is not insisting he has money for the actual construction of the wall. >> we're still in discussions with the house and senate leadership but i think the president is very clear he wants a wall and soon as we can do it. >> white negotiationors are willing to

abc news reporter mary bruce is on capitol hill. >> the republican leader today emerged from the partisan battlefield with a thumbs up. the top democrat, his head hung low in defeat. >> tchanging the senate rules t confirm supreme court nominees from now on with a simple majority vote, lowering the threshold from 60 votes to 51, a move so drastic it's known as the nuclear option. for two days democrats put up a fight on the floor, one senator talking for 15 hours straight. >> this is an extreme nominee from the far right. >> this morning they had the votes to block gorsuch, but republicans were prepared to go nuclear. >> certainly i think this worth it. >> many were hesitate the warning move could have lasting consequences on the court. >> bad day for the senate. we are who we are. >> given those reservations, why do it? >> because we're not going to have a system where republicans can't get judges and democrats can. >> many are still fuming after republicans refused to even consider president obama's nominee to fill this seat, merrick garland. >> it doesn't have to be this way. >> afterw

so-called nuclear option which means he could get on the court with just 51 votes instead of 60 and mary bruces on capitol hill with all the latest. good morning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, george. partisan fights have become the norm up here but this could be a new low. this showdown is so bitter that by the end of the week it could fundamentally change the way congress does business. now, here's the state of play. democrats are so opposed to neil gorsuch they're now willing to do something they've almost never done before filibuster his confirmation. but republicans are having none of it. they are vowing to bypass democrats even if it means changing the senate rules to allow just a simple majority to confirm a supreme court nominee. but, george, there's a reason this is known as the nuclear option. this rule change could have a lasting impact on the bench that stretches far beyond this current administration. in fact, even republicans who support the drastic move are warning it could make judges even more ideological, not less. >> hard to know all the consequence, one way or the other

our congressional correspondent mary bruce starts us off from capitol hill with all of that. od morning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, amy. yeah, the vice president was here last night meeting with key republicans for two hours. but still no agreement and no actual legislation. the white house is now eager to bring health care reform back to life and finally get this done. they're even willing to make changes to things that the president promised he wouldn't touch like protections for people with pre-existing conditions. under a new plan those patients could see their health care costs skyrocket. the white house is also now considering letting states opt out of a requirement that insurers cover some basic health care services, but it is simply not clear if all of this is going to be enough to get this done. especially for those ultra conservatives who are the ones who blocked the first attempt. >> right, so, mary, the white house obviously needs to strike that deal with conservative members, but where does that leave the moderates? are they going to be able to support this

echoing what he told our mary bruce there. that president trump parroted russian propaganda. more effective. i'll talk to senator john mccain about that allegation and much more next. to senator john mccain about that allegation and much more next. don't let dust and allergens and life's beautiful moments. flonase allergy relief delivers more complete relief. flonase helps block 6 key inflammatory substances that cause all your symptoms, including nasal congestion and itchy, watery eyes. flonase is an allergy nasal spray that works even beyond the nose. so you can enjoy every beautiful moment to the fullest. flonase. 6>1 changes everything. ♪ >>> it's very clear that vladimir putin has decided that he will eliminate his opponents and anyone who stands up for democracy and freedom. and he does so with relative impunity. >> senator john mccain with strong words about russian president vladimir putin. senator mccain will join us in a moment. his accusation is fiercely denied by russia. as is the finding from u.s. intelligence agencies that russia sought to undermine and influenc

mary bruce has more on all that. good morning, mary. >> reporter: good morning, robin. after spending a quiet holiday with his family, this morning, the president will celebrate with more than 20,000 guests here on his backyard. the white house, this morning. it's buzzing with activity. getting ready for the easter egg roll. across the country, a far less festive mood, from protesters demanding the president do something they feel is far overdue. this morning, president trump is back if washington, after spending east we are his family at mar-a-lago. the president celebrating the holiday. while being dogged by another annual event. tax day. [ crowd chanting ] >> reporter: across the country, thousands taking to the streets, demanding the president release his tax returns. snmt chanting snmd. >> all: hey hey, ho ho, donald trump has got to go. >> reporter: pro and anti-trump demonstrators clashed amid fireworks and pepper spray. from coast to coast, sorry, easter bunny. the trump chicken taking over. the president is being accused of being too chicken to show his tax ret

mary bruce, abc news, capitol hill. >>> now to the far east and some military moves amid the ongoing. aircraft carrier "carl vinson" closing in on the korean peninsula as the ship has been on the move, its aircraft have been in joint exercises with japan's air force. north korea has threatened to sink the "vinson" if provoked. >>> this, by the way, the first look at the joint military drills that the u.s. and south korean forces held, but this is the first time we're seeing these images. they were conducted as north korea was preparing to mark the anniversary of its military. these drills have taken place since the late 1970s and overnight south korea announced that key parts of a u.s. military defense system are now in place. the full senate goes to the white house this afternoon to get a closed door briefing about the north korean situation. >>> the president's crackdown on immigration has suffered another setback. a federal judge in california blocked the administration's attempt to withhold funding from sanctuary cities. calling an egregious overreach and vowing to win in the sup