Joe Biden's tax hike scam

Without beating around the proverbial bush, Joe Biden's administration has extreme difficulty telling the truth. For months, Biden's administration, along with today's Democrats, have said that the Trump tax cuts blew a hole in the deficit. They've said that the Trump tax cuts were the reason for the Biden/Democrat deficits. That's a pile of BS.

This WSJ op-ed blows the Biden administration's (and the Democrats') arguments into smithereens. The lefties' arguments don't stand a chance after The Journal's recitation of indisputable facts was published. According to the Journal, "Remember the claims during the 2017 tax debate that reform would drain the Treasury, especially the cut in the corporate income tax rate to 21% from 35%? Corporate revenue was supposed to fall to historic lows as a share of the economy. Big business supposedly got a windfall and government was robbed.

The WSJ editorial continues, saying "It hasn’t turned out that way. Corporate tax revenue declined in the immediate wake of reform as the rates fell. But the big news now is that more corporate tax revenue is flowing into the Treasury at record levels even with the lower rate."

This isn't rocket science. When it costs less to create capital, capital is quickly created. The Democrats' constant whining about the rich paying their fair share is jealousy. If I'm prospering, putting money aside for retirement, for food, housing, etc., I don't care if my neighbor has more money than I have. Perhaps, he or she worked harder than I did, created more wealth for his/her company.

In June 2017, before tax reform passed, CBO predicted corporate tax revenue of $383 billion in fiscal 2021. But in April 2018, after reform passed, CBO lowered its estimate to $327 billion. Actual corporate income tax revenue in 2021 was $372 billion—nearly as much at a 21% rate as CBO expected at the 35% rate that was among the highest in the world.

Fiscal 2022 is turning out to be even better for the Treasury. Corporate tax revenue for the first six months was up 22% from a year earlier to $127 billion. William McBride of the Tax Foundation estimates that if the pace of the first half continues, corporate tax revenue will hit a new record of $454 billion in fiscal 2022. (Corporate tax revenue increases in the back half of the year.)

President Reagan famously said that you can't love jobs but hate the employers. It would've been a joy to watch him debate socialist sourpusses like Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders. Instead of whining about not having such a video, let's watch this oldie-but-goodie:

This is more information to shove down Joe Biden's throat:

But the Occam’s razor policy answer is that corporate tax reform worked as its sponsors predicted: Lowering the rates while broadening the base by eliminating loopholes created incentives for more efficient investment decisions that paid off for shareholders, workers and the government.

One example is the way reform provided an incentive for companies to repatriate overseas earnings to invest in the U.S. Dan Clifton of Strategas Research Partners says companies have brought back some $1.8 trillion since the 2017 reform. Previously, companies that repatriated capital paid a punitive tax rate. They kept the money abroad instead.

If Joe Biden totally ditched BBB, returned to President Trump's energy policies and cut spending growth, attaining a balanced budget would be quite possible. In fact, Republicans, led by Newt Gingrich, Kevin Hassett and Larry Kudlow, are working on a plan to actually balance the budget. I won't bet against those gentlemen, especially considering their accomplishments. Let's not forget that Newt Gingrich negotiated the policies that produced 4 straight surpluses.

At the heart of these gentlemen's plans is making the Trump tax cuts permanent. We won't get there with Biden's redistributionist tax policies.