2007 Des Moines Register Democratic debate: on Tax Reform
Bill Richardson:
End unfair & unequal tax structure for wealthiest 2%
Q: When are tax increases necessary & appropriate? And given the current deficit, which priorities would be worth asking Americans to pay more for?A: Well, I think that 2% for the wealthiest Americans, that is unfair, unequal. That would go, in my
objectives as president. But fiscally responsible budgets, I believe, are critical for economic growth. And we use the tax structure to incentivize the economy, to give preference to solar, wind, biomedical companies & aviation & companies of the future.
Source: 2007 Des Moines Register Democratic debate
Dec 13, 2007
Hillary Clinton:
Want to restore the tax rates we had in the ‘90s
It’s important we recognize how people feel in Iowa and across America. They’re one pink slip, one medical diagnosis away from falling through. I want to restore the tax rates we had in the ‘90s. That means raising taxes on corporations and wealthy
individuals. I want to keep the middle-class tax cuts, and I want to start making changes that will save us money, save money in our Medicare budget, save money for the average American. During the ‘90s the typical Indiana family’s income rose $7,000.
I want to go back to a question. You all campaign on fairly significant new programs in education, health care, and the like that will cost Billions of dollars. At the same time, many of you have said that even if we start pulling troops out of
Iraq now, it will take some time to do that in a safe and orderly way. So if we assume that we’ll continue to have some military expenses in Iraq for many months, how will you pay for your new ideas in the short term?
Source: 2007 Des Moines Register Democratic Debate
Dec 13, 2007
Joe Biden:
Save $150 billion in tax cuts for people who don’t need them
You can put more into the government by close to $150 Billion in tax cuts going to people who don’t need them, will not affect the economy, and they didn’t ask for them. So you can pay for every one of these initiatives, but as my dad used to say,
it’s all about priorities. What are your priorities? I would change the republican priorities of rewarding only the wealthy government programs as well as dealing with a more rational policy to promote jobs.
Source: 2007 Des Moines Register Democratic Debate
Dec 13, 2007
John Edwards:
Get rid of the tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans
The tax policy in America has been established by big corporations and the wealthiest Americans. That’s why we have tax breaks for the top one and two percent, it’s why the profits of big corporations get bigger and bigger. So what we ought to be doing
instead is getting rid of these tax breaks for big, the wealthiest Americans, big tax breaks for companies that are actually taking American jobs overseas. This is insanity when we’re losing American jobs at the rate we are today.
And then on top of that, we need to help middle-class families. I have proposed specific ideas to help them save, to help them send their kids to college, and make sure they can pay for child care.
All these things are aimed at making sure that we strengthen the middle class, that we can pay for things like universal health care. Being honest with people, unless you have a way to pay for it, this is how you’d pay for it.
Source: 2007 Des Moines Register Democratic Debate
Dec 13, 2007
Page last updated: Nov 30, 2018