Trump quietly pushing Mike Johnson on raising taxes for wealthy

President Donald Trump is quietly pushing Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to raise taxes on wealthy Americans as Republicans negotiate the commander-in-chief's "big, beautiful bill."

Trump spoke with Johnson by phone on Wednesday and made the case for raising taxes on top income earners and closing the carried interest loophole, two people familiar with conversations told Fox News Digital.

It comes as Republicans work on a massive piece of legislation advancing Trump's priorities on taxes, border security, immigration, energy, defense, and the national debt.

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Differing projections show the bill is likely to add trillions of dollars to the country's deficit over the next 10 years, so fiscal hawks are looking for ways to mitigate that and set up America for a less bloated government down the line by pairing the new priorities with deep spending cuts elsewhere.

The tax portion of the bill is expected to be the costliest portion. 

Republicans are hoping to extend the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) as well as pay for newer Trump priorities like eliminating taxes on tips, overtime wages, and retirees' social security.

Proposals to raise taxes for the wealthy have included raising the highest marginal income tax bracket by one or two points, after it was lowered from 39.6% to 37% in TCJA. 

Another proposal would create an entirely new tax bracket for people making $1 million or more income annually. 

Punchbowl News, which first reported the Trump-Johnson call, stated that Trump wanted the 39.6% tax rate restored for Americans making at least $2.5 million per year.

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It's not clear yet what Republicans will decide, or even if they will decide to raise taxes on the highest earners – but details are expected to emerge in the coming days.

The Ways & Means Committee, the House's tax-writing panel, is expected to meet on Tuesday afternoon to advance that portion of Trump's bill.

Talks about potential tax hikes on the wealthy have triggered a deep rift within the Republican Party. 

Mainstream conservatives have balked at discussions of raising rates on anyone, arguing it would have a negative impact on job creators, while populist and more moderate Republicans have floated such ideas in order to pay for Trump's priorities to benefit the middle and working classes.

"Raising taxes on America's highest earners and biggest job creators makes no sense," Marc Short, a former chief of staff to ex-Vice President Mike Pence and a key part of TCJA negotiations, told Fox News Digital.

"I don't understand why there are some inside the current administration who are pushing Congress to raise the top rate, because again, these are America's job creators."

Other Republicans told Fox News Digital in recent weeks that they believe the idea could be popular, however.

"I'm open-minded to what the president or the treasury secretary may have in mind. And I would want to see some numbers behind it and how it would have an effect on the economy," conservative Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Ind., told Fox News Digital in late April.

"What I've heard from people in the upper tax brackets is, you know, they're willing to pay more as long as they know that it's paying the debt down. They don't want to see it go towards more spending."

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and Johnson's office for comment.