Diary Entry - 12/17/1985
Key Facts
President Reagan attends a farewell reception for departing Assistant for National Security Affairs Robert McFarlane.
President Reagan meets with Congressmen to discuss tax reform.
An hour of meetings with 3 different groups of Congressmen. Apparently my meeting with the Repub. Conf. yesterday had an impact. The Cong. will vote on the rule & that depends on us being able to deliver 50 Repub. votes. Then they will take up the actual tax bill—if the rule has passed.
We had an issues lunch in the cabinet room but our minds were on what was happening on the hill. The end of the afternoon was a farewell reception for Bud M. & his family. The news began to come in—the rule had passed & we delivered 70 Repub. votes. Then came the bill & it passed by voice vote.
Appropriately the evening was very pleasant. We had the Baldridges & the Sideys for an early dinner & then to Kennedy Center—all of us for the Claudette Colbert & Rex Harrison play.
