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Analysis: Gingrich tax plan starves government, say economists
Reuters ^ | Dec 19, 2011 | By Kim Dixon

Posted on 12/19/2011 9:36:44 PM PST by Jim Robinson

(Reuters) - Newt Gingrich's tax plan could blow a gaping hole in U.S. government revenues, while preserving special interest tax breaks, said economists aligned with the Republican presidential candidate's own party.

While other Republican contenders have made headlines with their tax proposals, Gingrich quietly released his months ago. It calls for slashing the corporate rate, giving individuals big tax breaks, and retaining many major deductions and credits.

Conservatives have applauded his proposal to lower rates, but economists on both the left and right have said his plan would drain federal coffers in the near term, making it impractical amid concerns about the federal budget deficit.

"The revenue loss in this plan is absolutely staggering," said Alan Viard, an economist at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank.

Viard based his assessment on an estimate by the Tax Policy Center, a left-leaning think tank, that he called reasonable.

The center forecast that Gingrich's plan would slash government revenues by at least $850 billion in one year, more than a third of the $2.3 trillion in 2011 government revenues.

A Gingrich adviser refuted the center's estimate and said the candidate's plan was not designed to be revenue neutral, but to be "growth maximizing."

"They made up the details," Gingrich economic adviser Peter Ferrara said of the TPC study. "They also did not take into account the impact of lowering rates on economic growth."

The idea that tax cuts can pay for themselves through growth is a controversial notion, dismissed by all but a handful of economists, but it is deeply entrenched in the Republican Party.

(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...


TOPICS: Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: election; gingrich; newt; taxes
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"The idea that tax cuts can pay for themselves through growth is a controversial notion, dismissed by all but a handful of economists, but it is deeply entrenched in the Republican Party."

We wish.

The Reaganite wing of the Republican party knows it to be so.

1 posted on 12/19/2011 9:36:56 PM PST by Jim Robinson
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To: Jim Robinson
Analysis: Gingrich tax plan starves government, say economists

Gingrich keeps looking better and better.

2 posted on 12/19/2011 9:39:01 PM PST by Lancey Howard
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To: Jim Robinson

Well outstanding then.

Make them part-time.

Hat tip: Rick Perry.


3 posted on 12/19/2011 9:39:41 PM PST by Cringing Negativism Network ("FREE TRADERS": Self-loathing Americans)
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To: Jim Robinson

And, the problem with that is?????


4 posted on 12/19/2011 9:40:17 PM PST by goodnesswins (Banning Christmas (and Christmas decorations) is something that commies do.)
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To: Jim Robinson
Gingrich tax plan starves government, say economists

They say it likes it's a bad thing.

Well, I suppose to them, it is.

5 posted on 12/19/2011 9:45:16 PM PST by Old Sarge (RIP FReeper Skyraider (1930-2011) - You Are Missed)
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To: Jim Robinson

They say “starves the government” like that’s a bad thing...


6 posted on 12/19/2011 9:45:59 PM PST by madmaximus (Anyone But Robamney.)
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To: Jim Robinson
Analysis: Gingrich tax plan starves government, say economists

The only way that can be a bad thing is if it doesn't starve it enough or fast enough. Starve off 95% or more of the social BS programs, completely cut-off the EPA and NEA, then that's just a decent start...

7 posted on 12/19/2011 9:48:46 PM PST by ThunderSleeps (Stop obama now! Stop the hussein - insane agenda!)
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To: Jim Robinson

Starve it, kill it, whatever it takes because it costs too much, takes too much, and does too little of use.

It will not restrain itself of its own free will. Restraint of the government must be by enforcement if not force.

I really don’t care if the tax cuts pay for themselves since the idea contained in that statement is revenue neutrality. The government spends too much. It is too powerful and must be cut off.


8 posted on 12/19/2011 9:54:58 PM PST by Sequoyah101 (Half the people are below average.)
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To: Jim Robinson
Gingrich should make wall-to-wall commercials out of this.

I would have trouble not voting for him.

9 posted on 12/19/2011 9:58:55 PM PST by M. Thatcher
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To: Jim Robinson

"The idea that tax cuts can pay for themselves through growth is a controversial notion, dismissed by all but a handful of economists, but it is deeply entrenched in the Republican Party."

Facts don't seem to bother economists- the US collected its most revenue ever ($2,568 billion) only after Bush cut taxes.

10 posted on 12/19/2011 9:59:34 PM PST by Qbert ("The best defense against usurpatory government is an assertive citizenry" - William F. Buckley, Jr.)
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To: Jim Robinson
"The revenue loss in this plan is absolutely staggering," said Alan Viard,.....

ROTFL. Cue that word again: "staggering!"

Let's have some staggering solutions to counter obama's staggering spending debt.

It's absolutely unfathomable amazing when we have alleged conservatives yapping about revenue losses arising from cuts in tax rates and cuts in spending!

11 posted on 12/19/2011 10:02:55 PM PST by onyx (PLEASE SUPPORT FREE REPUBLIC:DONATE MONTHLY! Sarah's New Ping List - tell me if you want on it.)
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To: Jim Robinson

Gingrich’s tax plan will increase revenues to the government. However, that doesn’t mean that starving the government isn’t necessary but it needs to happen through spending cuts, not tax policy.


12 posted on 12/19/2011 10:09:55 PM PST by upsdriver
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To: onyx

Staggering spending is right. Obama has spent more than all the presidents before him. And that’s only the spending we actually know about. What he and the federal reserve is doing in secret bailing out foreign banks probably doubles or triples that.


13 posted on 12/19/2011 10:10:20 PM PST by Jim Robinson (Rebellion is brewing!! Impeach the corrupt Marxist bastard!!)
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To: TitansAFC; SunkenCiv; narses; katiedidit1; PSYCHO-FREEP; Gator113

PING!


14 posted on 12/19/2011 10:19:00 PM PST by onyx (PLEASE SUPPORT FREE REPUBLIC:DONATE MONTHLY! Sarah's New Ping List - tell me if you want on it.)
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To: Jim Robinson

That secret and separate Federal Reserve Fund or Bank, (guess it’s a bank of some sort) it a scandal of itself, if only we were able learn more about it.

You betcha, those two are using it to bail out their Marxist pals tied to Soros and likely Goldman Sachs and other Rain Makers for obama in this country.

The entire obama administration is comprised of Marxist czars and unAmericans, whether the muddled-headed utopians realize it or not.

I think Gingrich will put a stop to that and blow the scheme wide open. He’s the historian who will want to be viewed as one of our greatest presidents.


15 posted on 12/19/2011 10:27:44 PM PST by onyx (PLEASE SUPPORT FREE REPUBLIC:DONATE MONTHLY! Sarah's New Ping List - tell me if you want on it.)
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To: Jim Robinson

” - - - The center forecast that Gingrich’s plan would slash government revenues by at least $850 billion in one year, more than a third of the $2.3 trillion in 2011 government revenues.

A Gingrich adviser refuted the center’s estimate and said the candidate’s plan was not designed to be revenue neutral, but to be “growth maximizing.”

_____________

Perhaps I missed it, but NO mention is made of cutting SPENDING, or “ cutting maximizing.”

This requires that the damned US Federal Government will keep right on growing their spending whether or not the economy is able to grow. This was tried with mixed success in the Reagan years, but our economy is not as elastic as was then, and may not work as well again.

After all, we are an order of magnitude more Government regulated than we are today. The proposed Canadian Oil Sands Pipeline is an excellent example of the difficulty of “growing the economy” in Regulated Amerika.

Every overspent (=Debt) dollar needs to be met with a $1.10 BASELINE cut in spending. The ten cents goes directly to buying back bonds purchased by foreigners who own our debt bonds.

Because it has been proven “beyond a shadow of a doubt” that Keynesian Economic theory has financially ruined our Nation, why not try the method we all use with our own personal checkbooks? You know, WHEN YOUR OUTGO EXCEEDS YOUR INCOME, YOUR UPKEEP WILL BE YOUR DOWNFALL.

Since our income expansion has only produced debt, why not decrease our outgo?

For example, Nanny-State Newt proposes NO cuts in baseline spending. He could become just Newt if he would cut baseline spending by 10 % more than he cuts taxes. Thus, Newt would give us a tax cut of 0.850 Trillion dollars, AND cut 0.950 Trillion dollars from baseline Federal spending.

BTW, doesn’t 0.950 Trillion dollars times 4 years equal 3.8 Trillion dollars? HEY FReepers, if we did for 10 years, why that would be a reduction in US Federal Government baseline spending of 9.5 Trillion dollars! That is about what GWB and Obama have burdened us with so far, and twice what the ‘Super Committee” was trying to achieve in rate of increase “cuts.”

Dang, I just wish the “Super Committee” had been able to figure out this “Go Big” 10 year plan!


16 posted on 12/19/2011 10:45:59 PM PST by Graewoulf (( obama"care" violates the 1890 Sherman Anti-Trust Law, AND is illegal by the U.S. Constitution.))
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To: Jim Robinson

“The federal government needs to know its limitations”- nOOt (dirty harry) Gingrich


17 posted on 12/19/2011 11:10:17 PM PST by hosepipe (This propaganda has been edited to include some fully orbed hyperbole...)
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To: Jim Robinson
BM

18 posted on 12/19/2011 11:11:21 PM PST by skinkinthegrass (I can take tomorrow, spend it all today. Who can take your income, tax it all away. Obama Man can. :)
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To: Jim Robinson

Unless Newt deals with the above, he's rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

19 posted on 12/19/2011 11:16:40 PM PST by KantianBurke (Where was the Tea Party when Dubya was spending like a drunken sailor?)
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To: KantianBurke

Yup. And he’s proposing privatizing social security and medicare and sending them back to the states and the people.


20 posted on 12/19/2011 11:20:02 PM PST by Jim Robinson (Rebellion is brewing!! Impeach the corrupt Marxist bastard!!)
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