The Gang Tries Fixing the Tax Code

[Virginiá]

That corporate tax drop is far more than we can afford at this point. As for the individual reform/simplification, Let's see the formal bill and the CBO score. If it doesn't increase the deficit, I don't see why I couldn't support it.

Well, you see, Republicans are in charge now, so that means that rascally debt issue is no longer an actual issue. We'll have to wait for a Democrat to become president again for the debt/deficit to once more become the #1 issue among Republicans.

[Virginiá]

The national debt? Let me stop you right there, my friend. That was caused by the spendthrift social programs. Let's remember that defense is only a relatively smaller portion of the deficit as compared to Social Security and Medicare.

Putting aside the GOP's own contributions to the debt, it doesn't actually matter how it got to where it is. What matters is the Republican Party's seemingly rock-solid devotion to a balanced budget / reducing the debt, but only when Democrats are in control. In other words, it is just an excuse for them to deny Democrats anything they want to do.

I could be wrong and maybe they do find a way to pay for whatever it is they plan on doing, but my money is on them just opting to do a large amount of deficit spending instead.

[Virginiá]

@super: yawn

It's not as if your party​ is that much better though. Sure, it leaped into action when the deficit was over one trillion and they had little other choice, but the attitude of the democratic party toward the current ~$600 B deficit seems to be a collective shrug.

Both parties' attitudes towards the deficit is unsettling, but many Republicans in Congress are consistently being hypocrites about this. You can't nitpick at every little thing Democrats want to do, jabbering about money, then turn around when you get into power and immediately start planning a massive tax reform package that in all likelihood won't be properly paid for. And I'm not even going to get into my views on blowing another hole in our budget just to shift more money into the pockets of those who need it the least.

[Virginiá]

ssuperflash is playing a game, Wulfric.

[Virginiá]

trump wants :
Massive tax cuts, which will raise the deficit.
Massive infrastructure spending, which will raise the deficit.
Considerable increase to the military budget, which will raise the deficit.

What the hell is the orange-haired clown thinking ?

He's not thinking anything. As he has said himself, he loves spending other people's money (and coincidentally, as the King Of Debt™, running up debt too). He doesn't care what he does to America so long as it gets him short term popularity and/or monetary benefits for himself and his family.

He pretty much has all the qualities you'd hope to god a president would never have.

[Virginiá]

I disagree that this tax cut is "bad for the deficit."  The CBO will probably score this statically and portray it as a reduction in revenue, but the truth is that tax cuts increase revenue due to increased economic activity.  Tax revenues under Reagan increased from $517B in 1980 to $909B in 1988 with two huge tax cuts.  The reason the deficit also increased was due to increased spending, not decreased revenue.

https://www.thebalance.com/current-u-s-federal-government-tax-revenue-3305762

2015: http://www.crfb.org/blogs/houses-new-rule-dynamic-scoring

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Congress already adopted dynamic scoring for the CBO specifically so their trickle down reform efforts wouldn't look as nasty.

This kind of "reform" is not going to plug the massive revenue gaps.