In the most high-profile gun control vote in decades, the U.S. House is scheduled to vote on universal background checks for gun purchases — including those done through private sales. Senate Republicans already have said the plan is dead on arrival in their GOP-controlled chamber. Meanwhile Arizona Republican Rep. Debbie Lesko is pushing an amendment to the House bill, set for a vote Wednesday, to let millions of people pre-approved by the Transportation Security Administration bypass gun background checks altogether. [Politico]
Topping the news: With a little over two weeks left in the legislative session, Republican lawmakers who have been working on a massive tax reform bill behind closed doors released some details, including new sales taxes on health-insurance premiums, real estate transactions, legal and financial services and more.