2007 GOP YouTube debate in St. Petersburg, Florida, Nov. 28, 2007: on Tax Reform

Duncan Hunter: Would be wrong to pledge never to raise taxes

A: I probably voted for more tax cuts than anybody here; but, I think it would be wrong to say, “Absolutely, I would pledge to Grover Norquist that I would never raise taxes.” Could have a national emergency.

John McCain: We need a simpler, fairer tax code, but not FairTax

A: I do not, and I think we should look very carefully at it. Obviously, we need a simpler, fairer tax code. If Congress can’t fix the tax code, give me the job and I’ll fix it.

Mike Huckabee: FactCheck: FairTax would not eliminate IRS; just change role

It is true that the FairTax would get rid of the agency that we now call the IRS. But, according to the bill Huckabee supports, the Fairtax would “eliminate” the IRS by replacing it with a new Sales Tax Bureau, which wouldn’t necessarily be much smaller than the existing IRS.

According to the Bush administration study on the FairTax, “The federal administrative burden for a retail sales tax may be similar to the burden under the current system.” The FairTax would also require an entirely new type of bureaucracy to “keep track of the personal information that would be necessary to determine the size of the taxpayer’s cash grant.”

Ron Paul: I have never voted for a tax increase; and never will

A: I have never voted for a tax increase; never will. But the tax issue is only one-half of it. You can easily pledge not to raise taxes, but you have to cut spending.

Tom Tancredo: Promise to oppose any efforts to raise taxes

A: Yes. I have the highest rating from the American Conservative Union of anybody. I also have the highest rating from the Americans for Tax Reform.