Commentary: While Americans around the country are bracing for President Trump and Congressional Republicans to roll out their tax plans, the consensus has been pretty clear - working families and the middle class will suffer under this disastrous policy. Trump and Republicans have been working in secret to hide what the American people already know to be true – the Republican tax plan would increase taxes on the middle class.
See coverage from across the country:
Sacramento Bee: When Trump talks big tax cuts, California’s middle class should check its wallets
“Overall, the top 1 percent of income earners in California would get 82 percent of the benefits, according to the California Budget & Policy Center. The middle 20 percent would only receive about 8.5 percent of benefits. That’s even more unbalanced than the nation; the 1 percent would get 67 percent, while the middle fifth would get 6.5 percent.” […]
“All 14 California Republicans in the House voted Thursday for the budget bill. Now they have a choice – kowtow to Trump, rich people and corporations, or look out for the vast majority of their constituents.”
Baltimore Sun: Trump tax cuts: A 'win' for the GOP, a disaster for the rest of us
“Republicans may want a win, but the rest of us are going to be paying the consequences. And sadly, we know exactly what they will be. How many times do we have to try the same idea to realize that massive tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy don’t translate into higher wages and better standards of living for the poor and middle class but instead massive deficits and widening inequality?”
Washington Post: “These Republicans used to pretend to care about debt. Not anymore.”
“REPUBLICANS AIM to unveil Wednesday a long-awaited tax plan, premised on the fanciful idea that slashing taxes by $1.5 trillion over 10 years will somehow leave the federal budget better off. And it is not just the GOP’s most blinkered ideologues who have bought into this wishful thinking.”
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: “Save the 401(k): Lowering cap on contributions is a bad idea”
“This would be disastrous for middle-aged Americans trying to save for a comfortable retirement, particularly those who are playing catch-up after a late start to building their retirement nest egg. More than 33 percent of workers rely solely on a 401(k) for retirement. According to a Pew Charitable Trust analysis, only 10 percent of workers now have a traditional pension, meaning that much of the workforce is dependent upon a 401(k), along with Social Security for retirement income.
“Tax reform is needed, but not on the backs of the people Donald Trump promised to help. The president should stick with his initial response: No way.”
The New York Times: David Leonhardt: “Donald Trump Wants to Raise Your Taxes”
“Ultimately, the plan would be likely to hurt the finances of the vast majority of Americans. No wonder it is starting to look politically vulnerable. Last week, a precursor bill barely passed the House, receiving 20 no votes from Republicans, many worried about the tax increases.”
Los Angeles Times: Doyle McManus: “If the Trump tax plan passes, don't count on a raise”
“But as we've seen over the last decade, the link between productivity and income growth doesn't seem to be functional any more. It's quite possible for corporations to earn record profits without wages growing at all.” […]
“Not only are the White House estimates controversial, but Hassett and other Trump aides also are already overselling them. Down in the fine print, Hassett notes that a household in the middle of the income distribution — the median American family — would see its income increase by $3,000, not $4,000.”
The News-Gazette: Ralph Martire: “Trump's tax cut is too good to be true”
“His proposal is so skewed to the wealthy that over the next 10 years, more than half of his multi-trillion dollar tax cut will go to the wealthiest one percent. Big business does well, too, gaining an estimated $4.1 trillion tax cut during the next decade. And that's not the only justification offered for the president's full-on, supply-side, tax cut.” […]
“By now, every American who is objective or can do math should know that the proposed supply-side tax cuts won't work as promised. Why expect certain failure? First and foremost is something called "history." Supply-side tax cuts have never worked as promised. Never. Second, focusing tax cuts on affluent individuals and corporations is not an effective way to stimulate private sector job growth — which pretty much explains why history has proven that supply-side economic theory is bogus.”
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch: “Republicans roll the dice on an unwritten, unworkable, unpopular tax measure”
“Congressional Republicans are risking their future on an as-yet-unwritten tax proposal that its donors are demanding but that most Americans think will benefit rich people who don’t need it.
[...]
“The House last week adopted the Senate’s budget framework — not the actual budget, as a confused President Donald Trump tweeted. It makes room for an as-yet-unspecified set of tax cuts by adding $1.5 trillion in deficit spending over the next 10 years. So much for the GOP’s alleged allegiance to responsible budgeting.
“Republicans, who desperately need a victory, hope to pass the tax-cut package by Thanksgiving and send it to Trump by Christmas. They are hoping the fast-track schedule will make it less likely that Americans will figure out that this is not a middle-class tax cut. It is a giveaway to corporations and wealthy Americans. The only question is how lopsided the final numbers will be.”
The Kinston Free Press: “Don’t throttle retirement plans”
“If Republicans severely limit annual contributions, they will cause massive disruption — for no good reason. It’s not as if 401(k)s are broken, and that the GOP is proposing a better alternative. Rather, Republicans are cynically seeking to rob Peter to pay Paul.
[...]
“President Donald Trump’s Twitter account often is a scattershot of unbridled retorts to perceived personal sleights leavened with occasional half-baked policy ideas. Monday morning, though, he took clear aim at Congress when he tweeted: ‘There will be NO change to your 401(k). This has always been a great and popular middle class tax break that works, and it stays!’ Hopefully that’s one principle that is non-negotiable.”
Akron Beacon Journal: “No time for a tax cut”
“President Trump and congressional Republicans talk about delivering landmark tax reform. They do so, in part, to dress up the potential achievement, Republicans in need of a political success after much faltering this year. Unfortunately, this effort lacks the substance of the true advance in the Reagan years, the result of expert analyses from varied perspectives, hearings, debate and consensus-building.
“Ideally, Republicans would focus on what the country needs, starting with repairs to the corporate tax system. Many cite the relatively high corporate rate of 35 percent. Yet the effective rate is around 20 percent, indicating the many exemptions and loopholes. Thus, the logical response: End the tax breaks to deliver a lower rate, tracking the trend among peer countries, adding to overall competitiveness.”