Taxes
Trump Says Some Wealthy Should Pay Higher Taxes, Including Himself
Donald Trump, the billionaire frontrunner for the Republican Party’s nomination for president in 2016, says he wants to cut taxes for the middle class. And if that ends up increasing the tax burden for the wealthiest Americans, including himself, so be it
Aug. 28, 2015
Donald Trump, the billionaire frontrunner for the Republican Party’s nomination for president in 2016, says he wants to cut taxes for the middle class. And if that ends up increasing the tax burden for the wealthiest Americans, including himself, so be it.
The remarks from the ubiquitous candidate, who is famous for “firing” from the hip first and asking questions later, came during a segment of Bloomberg’s “With All Due Respect” on August 26. Reiterating a common theme among Republicans, Trump advocated wholesale changes in the tax code that would benefit the general public.
“I would change it. I would simplify it,” Trump told hosts Mark Halperin and John Heilemann from the Trump Tower in midtown Manhattan. In particular, he identified hedge fund managers as some of the main culprits. “I would take carried interest out, and I would let people making hundreds of millions of dollars-a-year pay some tax, because right now they are paying very little tax and I think it’s outrageous,” said Trump. “I want to lower taxes for the middle class.”
But the maverick politician went one step further. When asked if he was prepared to pay higher taxes himself, he shot back, “That’s right. That’s right. I’m OK with it. You’ve seen my statements, I do very well, I don’t mind paying some taxes. The middle class is getting clobbered in this country. You know the middle class built this country, not the hedge fund guys, but I know people in hedge funds that pay almost nothing and it’s ridiculous, OK.”
This viewpoint diverges with most Republicans who have traditionally supported a reduction in taxes for the wealthy. Although Trump’s remarks were made off the cuff, you can expect Republican challengers to use them as fodder when needed.
According a recent Gallup poll reported in the Washington Post on August 28, a majority of Americans overall favor an increase in taxes for the rich. But only 29 percent of GOP supporters while a robust 70 percent disagree (leaving just 1 percent undecided). Similarly, a 2014 Pew Poll indicates that most taxpayers would approve of a tax boost for wealthy individuals and corporations, but only 29 percent of Republicans would go along with this move. In fact, 59 percent of the Republicans surveyed would lower taxes on the wealthy to create a trickle-down effect.
No one would ever portray Donald Trump as a Robin Hood, but he’s now on record as effectively saying we should “rob from the rich and give to the poor,” at least as far as taxes are concerned. We will see what other arrows he has in his quiver as the campaign progresses.