Although Donald Trump’s experience in government is non-existent, the Republican front-runner prides himself on his alleged business savvy. But a report from the Tax Foundation shows that Trump’s newly-unveiled tax plan would increase the national debt by more than $10 trillion over the next decade, by lowering taxes for the super-rich.
Trump revealed his plans for tax reform on Monday. The plans include massive tax cuts, which he claims will be off-set by closing loopholes for wealthy corporations. But those who have analyzed the plan have found that the numbers just don’t add up. An analyst from the Tax Foundation, a non-partisan think tank, said of the proposal:
“The much lower top marginal rate of 25 percent will mean a large cut for the top, even with the limitation on itemized deductions… Trump is claiming a tax increase on wealthy individuals, but I do not believe this will be the case.”
According to NBC News, the new report shows that Trump’s economic “vision” would in fact end up costing the country $12 trillion in total. In addition to increasing the debt by over $10 trillion from individual tax reform, Trump’s corporate tax cuts would add $1.54 trillion, and eliminating the estate tax would mean another $238 billion.
Given Trump’s dubious financial history, the depressing reality of his tax plan should come as no surprise. Trump’s businesses have filed for bankruptcy four times, making Trump the “top filer” of bankruptcy in recent decades. Trump has proudly stated his abuse of bankruptcy laws as showing good business sense, but while it may be a good strategy for lining the pockets of rich CEOs, it’s no way to run a country.
Despite threatening to drive the country into bankruptcy, just like his business ventures, Trump is living up to the Republican tradition of increasing the national debt with tax cuts for the wealthy. The Tax Foundation has shown that Trump’s competitors’ tax proposals would also drive the country further into debt. Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, and Rand Paul all offer plans that would cost $3 trillion or more. In a recent interview, Bush was dumbstruck when asked to explain the projected deficit increase.
Trump has claimed his tax plan would be a “rocket ship” for the economy, but real economic analysis shows that it would only blow up on the launchpad. This once again proves that the image that Trump tries to project does not correspond to reality. It’s important to keep these facts in mind as the Republicans attempt to strike fear into the public about the cost of expanding necessary social programs such as education and healthcare. The fact is, the Republicans want to reduce such programs, but their plans leave us more and more in debt, while reducing taxes for the super-rich. Trump’s plan would increase their incomes by 21.6%, while leaving millions of Americans to wallow in poverty. It looks like Trump has finally picked up a few ideas from the Republican establishment he fights against so hard.