While on the campaign trail in 2015 and 2016, Donald Trump mostly stuck to Republican dogma when it came to taxes — all tax cuts are good, and they always pay for themselves with increased revenue — even if history
While on the campaign trail in 2015 and 2016, Donald Trump mostly stuck to Republican dogma when it came to taxes — all tax cuts are good, and they always pay for themselves with increased revenue — even if history shows that’s hardly the case.
But when it came to naming people to implement his agenda, this vagueness gave way to sophistication.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said lower tax rates for the rich should be accompanied by elimination of many deductions and dodges used to avoid paying income taxes. He called a simpler tax code — not lower rates — the key to boosting growth. Given how byzantine U.S. tax policies have led companies to park $2 trillion in profits overseas — funds that could be powering growth in America — Mnuchin has a strong case.
So when the president gave a speech about tax policy Wednesday, there was hope it would be substantive and smart.
In part, Trump delivered, calling for eliminating “loopholes and complexity that primarily benefit the wealthiest Americans and special interests.” But his main emphasis was on cutting corporate tax rates at a time of record corporate profits — not on helping individual Americans. The criticism from Democrats such as Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer of New York — that Trump’s proposed changes should focus on helping the middle class, not the 1 percent — is valid.
Yet a simpler, fairer tax code — one that encourages economic growth — might still emerge when the dust settles. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., have said this is their goal.
Given how little Congress has accomplished this year, passing genuine tax reform would be a triumph the GOP needs — and America deserves.
— The San Diego Union-Tribune
