In Romney’s Tax Plan, the Devil’s in the (Lack Of) Details
Romney is telling a tale - how raising taxes on the middle class isn’t raising taxes on the middle class, and how lowering taxes even more on the Uber Rich will help the economy after a decade of already trying that. Call the tale “Romney Hood” — he robs from the middle to give to the rich.
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney insists that his plan to cut tax rates by 20% across the board wouldn’t increase the federal deficit because he’d eliminate some of the loopholes used by the wealthy. Those changes, combined with faster economic growth, would keep government revenue rising at its current rate, Romney argues.
Whether that’s actually possible is a subject of intense debate among economists, who’ve been left to guess which tax breaks Romney would seek to end for whom. Unfortunately, when Romney was asked in a television interview Sunday to explain how his plan would work, he responded with the same vague outline that he’s offered in the past. Details matter in tax policy, and if Romney is going to make his economic plan the centerpiece of his election bid, he should stop punting on the specifics.