ICYMI: At Hearing, Warren Slams Trump’s Plan to Give Billionaires Handouts Instead of Investing in Working People
Hearing
"A progressive tax code can give a break to families and small businesses, while making sure that those at the top pay a fair share. And that gives us enough money to make the investments we need to make in roads and bridges and infrastructure to schools and Social Security, and the things we need to buy to keep this country going.
"I want to talk for just a minute though, about the politics and power about how all of this works. For decades now, instead of a tax system running that way, we have gotten caught in a doom loop on taxes. So Republicans pass these giant tax cuts for the wealthy, they toss a few small breaks to everyone else, and then, because of the special tax breaks they get, the rich get richer, and their growing piles of cash fund the armies of lobbyists that demand even greater tax breaks. Meanwhile, because billionaires and billionaire corporations are skipping out on their tax bills, deficits go through the roof. Republicans then use rising deficits as an excuse to cut the programs that American families rely on. Over time, the rich get richer and everyone else gets left behind.
"The result? Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk pay a lower tax rate than firefighters and public school teachers.
"So, let’s look at the most recent tax scam. I know we’ve gone over this a little bit, but I want to see if we can get it on the record and tie it into other parts of what is happening here. $2 trillion tax giveaway to millionaires and billionaires that Donald Trump signed in 2017, and the sequel he’s now promised that he will renew for his billionaire buddies next year.
"Mr. Duke, what was the impact of the 2017 Trump tax cuts on the U.S. economy? Did those tax cuts trickle down and supercharge our economy?
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"Okay, so let’s see. Business investment actually fell?
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"Housing investment cratered. Corporate profits,what happened to them?
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"Corporate profits went up. Stock buybacks?
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"Record stock buybacks up. And executive pay?
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"Okay. Ms Shuler, tell me. Did the Trump tax cuts trickle down to the 12.5 million union workers you represent at the AFL-CIO? Transportation workers, food workers, teachers, construction, nurses, and more?
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"So the rich get a dollar, and the workers get a penny?
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"Less than a penny.
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"Okay. I think we’re detecting a theme here. And Mr. Morial, did the 2017 tax cuts for millionaires and billion or lift up Black Americans and other underserved communities that you represent at the National Urban League?
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"Okay so, this time around, it’s going to be the same old scam. Trump has promised that he’ll splash out another $4 trillion extending all of his rich pals’ tax cuts, and throw in a few more goodies for good measure and that he will give another rate cut for billionaire corporations. And he’s promised a little something extra for Big Oil, and that means one more loophole for Wall Street. Here’s the part, now, that I want to see if we can draw a connection. Special interests lavished eye-popping amounts of money to get Donald Trump reelected, and now these same special interests are ready to collect. 'But wait,' Donald Trump says, 'Don't mind all of that.' He says he will cut taxes on overtime pay and social security for everyone else. So, that is how this is going to work out. Ms. Shuler, you represent these workers. Is that a good deal for workers?
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"That’s right. So, think about that. Donald Trump says he will slash taxes, end taxes on overtime, but he will also end overtime. And says he will cut taxes on social security, at the same time as his running buddy right now, Elon Musk, is saying they are going to slash Social Security. Trump and his buddies think that if they throw small cuts to working people that no one will notice that millionaires and billionaires are pocketing trillions of dollars. They think that if they give small cuts to working people, that they won't notice when infrastructure jobs dry up or when their Social Security checks are cut. But the American people are not so easily fooled. In December of 2017, when Donald Trump signed his $2 trillion dollar tax giveaway into law, it was his lowest approval rating of his entire presidency, second only to the insurrection he stoked on January 6. The American people know a scam when they see one. Trump's last tax giveaway was a scam of giant proportions and his plan for another tax cut for billionaires is more of the same. Thank you.
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"Thank you, Senator Helmy. And thank you for the comments on this. So, the Trump tax scam playbook has more than one page. Page one is hiding the giveaways to the wealthy by trying to throw some small cuts – or at least allegedly throw some small cuts to working Americans.
"Then there is page two, using magic math to pretend the tax cuts don't cost anything at all. The 2017 Trump tax cut was so big that Republicans had to use budget gimmicks and accounting tricks in order to hide the true cost. One of the main tools was to set up a bunch of the cuts to expire next year. That limited the cost to 'just' $2 trillion. So, what is Trump's second term agenda? Keep cutting taxes for billionaires and pretend they don't cost anything. Magic math formula number one – 'save money' by defunding the IRS and letting wealthy tax cheats off the hook.
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"Yeah. But that’s not the only magic math. Senator Crapo, the incoming chief Republican tax writer in the Senate, has an even better scam. He’s running around Capitol Hill saying Congress shouldn’t pay for a single cent of the $5 trillion in the Trump tax cut extensions, because that is just extending current policy, and if you’re extending current policy, it doesn’t cost anything; it’s free.
"Mr. Duke, another math question for you. Does $2 trillion in tax cuts in 2017 plus another $5 trillion in extensions in 2025 equal zero dollars in cost?
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"Yeah. You know, none of this is new. For decades, Republicans have, over and over, passed massive giveaways to the wealthy, used fake math to try to hide the true cost, and then turned around and claim to be shocked, shocked by the ballooning deficit. Then, in fake outrage, they demand that we cut the deficit by cutting funding for everything from Social Security to public schools. Trump and his MAGA buddies have made clear that they plan to run the same play again next year. They want to hide the true cost of tax cuts for billionaires and billionaire corporations and do it while claiming that they’re helping working people.
"Mr. Morial, should working people buy this?
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"I very much appreciate your comments on this. Look, Democrats in Congress should flat out reject Trump's Tax Scam 2.0, and the junk math Republicans are using to try to sell this thing. The tax code is not about magic math, it is about choices. Are we a country that invests in roads and bridges, in housing, in health care, in our children, or a nation that cuts taxes for billionaires and billionaire corporations?
"American families are counting on us to have their backs. And that means fighting for a tax code that demands that the wealthy pay their fair share just like everyone else. A tax code that invests in American workers. A tax code that helps build a stronger economy, in which everyone gets a chance to participate. In next year's tax debate, every person in the United States Senate will have the opportunity to show the American people whose side they are on – the side of billionaires clamoring for more handouts, or the side of hard-working Americans? Because next year is a chance to fight for a tax code that works for working people. A chance to fight against more giveaways to the wealthy and giant corporations and flat out reject any package that includes billionaire handouts. It is a chance, next year, to fight for a tax code that raises taxes on the wealthy to fund the investments that we all need. And I am proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with working people across this country in this fight.
"I want to say one more time how much I thank the witnesses for being here today, for the testimony that you provide, and for the work you do every day. For any Senators who wish to submit questions for the record, those questions will be due one week from today, Wednesday, November 27. And for our witnesses, you will have 45 days to respond to any questions. Thank you again. And with that, this hearing is adjourned."
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