In Case You Missed It…
Discusses Senate tax reform bill and proposed bill improvements with Fox News’ Neil Cavuto
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today appeared on Fox News’ ‘Your World With Neil Cavuto,’ to discuss the Senate’s tax reform bill and his efforts to reach consensus. He also highlighted his proposal to establish a mechanism that would decrease government spending and tax rates dependent upon future economic growth. The first mechanism – if economic growth projections aren’t met – would trigger an automatic reduction in federal government spending. The second – if growth projections are exceeded – would direct half of the increased tax revenue to paying down our national debt, and the other half to reducing all individual tax rates.
“We’ve got to 50 [votes], and we’re working hard to get to 50 [votes],” Sen. Cruz said. “One of the big issues we’re debating right now is what’s called a trigger. There are a couple of senators who are concerned that growth won’t hit the projections. And they’re proposing a trigger that if growth doesn’t hit the projections, the corporate tax rate automatically rises. I think that is a very bad idea. I think number one, automatic tax increases without a fresh vote from Congress is a mistake. It’s a bad precedent. Number two, if you’re headed into a recession, the worst thing to do is raise taxes.
He also discussed proposals to address the possibility that the bill’s economic growth projections occasionally fall short of or exceed expectations:
“What I proposed in response [that’s getting traction among the conference] is two pieces. Change the trigger. Instead of being an automatic tax increase, if the growth projections aren’t met, have an automatic reduction in federal government spending. Like Gramm-Rudman – automatically reduce spending. It accomplishes the same purpose but it doesn’t raise taxes. And here’s the second piece that’s even more consequential. I’m calling it a reverse trigger. What I’ve been arguing is if you want a trigger on one side if we don’t get growth, let’s get a trigger on the other side, if growth exceeds projections. If we get even more economic growth, and the projections are really pretty poultry – then the additional federal revenue that comes in from growth, fifty percent of that should go to paying down our debt, and fifty percent should go to across the board pro-rata reductions in individual tax rates. That gives us the potential for a second serious tax cut to come in if we see the kind of growth that we’re hoping and expecting to see.”
Watch Sen. Cruz’s interview here.