Posted on 08/30/2015 6:54:01 AM PDT by conservativejoy
First Donald Trump antagonized the Republican establishment with his proposals on immigration. Then he irritated some with his stands on trade and Social Security. Now Trump is preparing a tax proposal that will again set him far apart from the party's powers-that-be.
The problem for the establishment is that Trump's positions on all three issues are more in line with the majority of American voters than the establishment's preferred policies. By using his popularity to force outside-the-GOP-box ideas into the Republican presidential debate, Trump is displaying an uncanny sense of the divisions between voters and the GOP power structure.
Trump has been sending signals that his tax proposal, which he says will be "comprehensive," will include higher rates for some of the richest Americans, a position generally at odds with Republican orthodoxy. "I want to see lower taxes," Trump said at an appearance in Norwood, Mass., on Friday night. "But on some people, they're not doing their fair share."
In particular, Trump has said he will go after "carried interest," which refers to the practice of hedge fund managers who make hundreds of millions of dollars a year paying a lower tax rate than Americans who earn ordinary wages. "I would take carried interest out, and I would let people making hundreds of millions of dollars a year pay some tax, because right now they are paying very little tax and I think it's outrageous," Trump told Bloomberg Politics last week. "I want to lower taxes for the middle class."
"Hedge fund guys have to pay up," Trump said Friday on MSNBC. "I'm going to lower taxes, but these hedge fund guys are making a lot of money — I have friends who laugh about how little they pay — and it's not fair to the middle class."
Trump appears to have a special concern about hedge fund executives — "They don't really build anything, they shuffle paper," he said on MSNBC. But his comments to Bloomberg suggest he might also target "people making hundreds of millions of dollars a year" in a more general way. Asked about a broad policy of increasing taxes on the super rich, Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski would say little about Trump's intentions, but noted that "Mr. Trump has said that he does not mind paying what is required to make our country great again."
Raising taxes on anyone, even the super rich, has generally been anathema to Republicans for a generation. But Trump will probably find a receptive ear among American voters overall. An academic study by Stanford professor David Broockman and Berkeley Ph.D candidate Douglas Ahler — a study that also had revealing findings about immigration — suggests that Trump's views on taxes are closer to the public's than those of Republican elites.
In the paper, Broockman and Ahler examined a broad range of public opinion on several issues. They conducted a poll in which respondents, rather than being given either-or policy options, were presented with a range of seven different possibilities on a particular issue, from the far left to the far right. On the question of federal taxes, these are the options Broockman and Ahler presented to respondents:
1. Establish a maximum annual income, with all income over $1,000,000 per year taxed at a rate of 100 percent. Decrease federal taxes on the poor and provide more services benefiting the middle class and poor.
2. Increase federal income taxes on those making over $250,000 per year to pre-1990s levels (over 5 percent above current rates). Use the savings to significantly lower taxes and provide more services to those making less and to invest in infrastructure projects.
3. Increase federal income taxes on those making over $250,000 per year to 1990s rates (5 percent above current rates). Use the savings to lower taxes and provide more services to those making less while also paying down the national debt.
4. Maintain current levels of federal spending and federal income taxes on the rich, middle class, and poor.
5. Decrease all individuals' income tax rates, especially high earners who pay the most in taxes now, accomplished by decreasing government services.
6. Move to a completely flat income tax system where all individuals pay the same percentage of their income in taxes, accomplished by decreasing government services.
7. Move to a flat consumption tax where all individuals pay the same percentage of their purchases in taxes, banning the income tax, even if this means the poor pay more in taxes than the rich. Significantly decrease government services in the process.
I wonder if Trump is still planning to meet with Steve Forbes, Art Laffer, and Steve Moore to develop a tax plan?
I don’t think anyone can snap their fingers and move us to a Fair Tax situation overnight. The politics and the bureaucracy just won’t allow it. But I think Trump’s plan moves us in a good direction. It simplifies, it flattens, it gets people ready for something like a Fair Tax. Certainly its better than what we have.
5-7 are conservative positions.
This is the best response to Trump clear stupidity on taxes you can come up with: “I wonder if Trump is still planning to meet with Forbes, Laffer, Moore?”
Trump is spewing the left’s position of class warfare and the rich “not paying their fair share”, and you just want to sit back and pretend like Trump didn’t say it and “hope” some conservatives who have a clue sit him down for a discussion.
More folly on this blind worship of Trump exposed. You’re putting your faith and trust in a liberal.
Trump appears to have a special concern about hedge fund executives — “They don’t really build anything, they shuffle paper,” he said on MSNBC. “Mr. Trump has said that he does not mind paying what is required to make our country great again.”
FAIL. Bigger government does not make our country greater. Smaller government with more money and power left in the hands of the people will.
Trump’s “plan” is class warfare in disguise.
Anybody that advocates taxing the rich more because they “aren’t paying their fair share” doesn’t have a clue about how an economy works.
The last info I had said that he was meeting with them. What he comes up with will be the best, to be sure.
When Bernie Sanders talks of doing this kind of thing these Trumpsters would call it socialist garbage, when "the Donald" does it all is forgiven.
Trump is not a conservative and eventually these leftist positions will catch up with him.
I believe Trump’s plan includes a top bracket of 15%.
You think he’s screwing the rich with that one? Does it reek of class warfare to you?
From what I understand Trump wants #5. Brackets of 1-5-10-15.
This looks like a workable approach. He will have a more detailed plan out eventually. Even what he has released so far is the best I’ve seen.
EXACTLY.
If Mr Trump wants to pay more, there is nothing stopping him right now from writing a check of his own free will to Uncle Sam for whatever amount he deems is right. That’s called charity.
But that’s not what he said. He advocated class warfare. Making the rich pay “their fair share” is a leftist talking point. In fact, Joe “Plugs” Biden spewed this in 2008 about the rich having to be “patriotic” by paying more. How the hell would Trump debate Biden on this when their positions are essentially the same?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCqgNWRjmAc
Biden Interview from 2008 :26 long
I think/hope DT is a Laffer supply side guy. It works.
Steve Forbes, Art Laffer, and Steve Moore of the Heritage Foundation said they had spoken with Trump about hammering out a tax policy in September. I heard it live (I think it was on Cavuto).
That said, Trump's tax the rich talk is about the tax break that hedge fund managers get on their "income" (called carried interest--look it up) being taxed at long term capital gains rates (20% even when income can amount to billions). And some use tax loopholes to defer even that (so I am told by my CPA).
GOP orthodoxy.
Now, THAT’s a name I’ve not heard in a long, long time.
Oh yea, it was preached by that Jedi...Obi-One Assholly
Yes, but at least Trump is properly identifying "the rich."
To Democrats, "the rich" means the small business owner next door who makes 10K more a year than his government union employee neighbor. How dare he?
Trump is talking about Corzine.
“This looks like a workable approach. He will have a more detailed plan out eventually. Even what he has released so far is the best I’ve seen.”
Agree...the loopholes at the top are CRIMINAL and costs our party millions of votes trying to defend them. If you make $500k at a job, you’re taxed at 39.6%. But if you make $100M at a hedge fund, you’re taxed at maybe 5.0%...is that right?
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