2015 State of the Union address: on Corporations

Barack Obama: Close loopholes that let top 1% avoid paying taxes

Let's close loopholes so we stop rewarding companies that keep profits abroad, and reward those that invest in America. Let's use those savings to rebuild our infrastructure and make it more attractive for companies to bring jobs home. Let's simplify the system and let a small business owner file based on her actual bank statement, instead of the number of accountants she can afford. And let's close the loopholes that lead to inequality by allowing the top 1% to avoid paying taxes on their accumulated wealth. We need a tax code that truly helps working Americans trying to get a leg up in the new economy, and we can achieve that together.

Rand Paul: No safety net cuts until corporate welfare is all cut

Some will ask, "But what of the safety net?" I say: We will not cut one penny from the safety net until we've cut every penny from corporate welfare!

So much of Washington's inability to cut waste in government comes from them not doing their job. It has been several decades since Congress passed all the spending bills individually. Instead, the spending bills are lumped together in something that is thousands of pages long. They allow no amendments to cut wasteful spending. Often the bill is plopped on our desk with only a few hours to review. No one, and I mean no one, is able to read what is in the bill. To fix this, I will introduce legislation called "Read the Bills Act." It mandates that Congress wait one day for each 20 pages of legislation.