I've run the numbers, using data from the IRS and the Social Security administration.
Per the scant details provided, Cruz's plan would add over a trillion a year to the deficit. See my post #36 for the details, and that was using someone's claim that the rate would actually be 15%.
The only way it would work is if the business tax raised far more than is currently collected by the corporate income tax. And frankly, I don't see how that could make things better -- businesses don't pay taxes: their customers pay them in the form of higher prices.
And once again, I'll reiterate: this analysis is from someone that LIKES Cruz. I don't see how this does Cruz any good, because the result is pretty obvious to anyone that knows where to find historical tax collection data.
I read the plan and listened to the Kudrow interview, and if I recall correctly, he mentioned that with static scoring, the 10 year cost would be under $4 trillion, and with relatively conservative dynamic scoring, under $800 billion for 10 years.
Then, I read that the tax is on REVENUE minus expenses and capital expenditure. And combined with the numbers he’s reporting, that’s what leads me to believe he’s not allowing expenses to include wages, broadly speaking. Because, then, it eould be more like a VAT, which could raise a bunch more money with deceptively lower rates.
As well, in the Kudrow interview, Larry Kudrow called it a sort of a VAT, or words to that effect.