Many years ago, Wendy’s did an advertising campaign centered on the question, “Where’s the beef?”
A similar question was running thru my mind today after reading a blast email from my church’s Google group. It was sent by a person that is a hardcore supporter of Ted Cruz. The guy is a CPA and figured that since today was tax day, he would blast it out to us. I’m sure it’s based on an email from Cruz’s campaign.
I’m including a link from the Tax Foundation that gives an analysis of Cruz’s tax reform plan, but here is a summary:
Ted Cruz’s tax reform plan is brilliant:
—> A 10% flat tax on individuals and families (on all income);
—> Eliminate itemized deductions, except charitable contributions and the home mortgage deduction;
—> Eliminate all individual tax credits, except the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit, expand the Earned Income Tax Credit (for poor people) by 20%;
—> Eliminate the first $36,000 of income from tax (people making less than $36,000 per year would not pay any tax at all);
—> Eliminate the estate tax;
—> ELIMINATE THE CORPORATE INCOME TAX! (YES!);
Replace the corporate income tax with a flat 16% consumption tax – YES! (This would cause corporations to pay taxes on what they consume (pay for) in the U.S. (like salaries, rent, goods, services, etc.) and would eliminate all the game playing corporations do to off-shore their profits – what the government calls “inversion”.) – It is the RIGHT thing to do!
—> ELIMINATE ALL CORPORATE TAX LOOPHOLES! (YES!).
I wrote a reply that was not forwarded to the mail list so I’m putting it on my blog just to I can be on the record.
Thanks for the Cruz plug but I respectfully dissent.
1. If this tax plan is so great then where is the legislation?
Cruz is in his second term in the US Senate and this is the first that I’m hearing all this. If this economic proposal is his heartfelt belief and is so great for the country where is the bill package? Who are his co-authors?
Cruz has been campaigning for President since he took part in the filibuster many years ago. He has given the run for President much thought and planning.
2. After New York votes tomorrow, he is mathematically eliminated from an outright win. (I’m getting told this by people involved in the Cruz campaign.)
3. The biggest practical problem in changing the tax code is how do we get from where we are to something new without ending up with both. The Federal Income Tax was a temporary tax to pay for World War I and we still have it.
What Ted Cruz says and what he does are frequently different. This is just another example.
These ideas may have some merit over the current system but I see no path for Cruz to get to the White House except possibly in the Vice Presidential slot.
I’m getting really tired of being told that I have to vote for Cruz because of his religion. I thought we are supposed to look at the content of a person’s character. Cruz’s faith has no impact on how he conducts his political life so why should I let it influence my vote?