Trump Cabinet members actions and issues: on Tax Reform
Larry Kudlow:
Never believe the CBO: tax cuts will not increase deficit
In April 2018, Kudlow said that the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office was untrustworthy. He dismissed CBO's estimate that the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act would increase the deficit by $1.3 trillion, saying, "Never believe the CBO. Very important:
Never believe them. They're always wrong, especially with regard to tax cuts, which they never score properly." All credible studies of the tax plan, whether by non-partisan organizations, Wall Street analysts, or right-leaning research organizations,
showed that the tax plan would increase the deficit. In July 2018, Kudlow falsely asserted that "Even the CBO numbers show now that the entire $1.5 trillion tax cut is virtually paid for by higher revenues and better nominal GDP."
The CBO actually found that the tax cut reduces revenues and that deficits would increase by $1.9 trillion after accounting for macroeconomic feedback.
Source: Wikipedia.com for Trump Cabinet biographies
Dec 31, 2018
Steve Mnuchin:
Implemented Trump's "Tax Cuts and Jobs Act"
As Secretary of the Treasury, Mr. Mnuchin is responsible for the U.S. Treasury, whose mission is to maintain a strong economy, foster economic growth, and create job opportunities.Secretary Mnuchin has played a pivotal role in advancing the
Administration's economic agenda, including the passage and implementation of its key legislative achievement, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. He also leads the Treasury Department's regulatory reform efforts. Secretary Mnuchin is chair of the Committee on
Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and is a member of the National Security Council. He is responsible for using economic tools to combat terrorist financing and other threats to the United States and our allies.
Prior to his
confirmation, Secretary Mnuchin was Finance Chairman for Donald J. Trump for President and traveled extensively with the President. He also served as a Senior Economic Advisor to the President in developing his economic agenda.
Source: Treasury.gov official website for Trump Cabinet biographies
Dec 31, 2018
Steve Mnuchin:
Bypassing congress to cut taxes on capital gains possible
Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary, said in an interview on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit meeting in Argentina this month that his department was studying whether it could use its regulatory powers to allow Americans to account for
inflation in determining capital gains tax liabilities. The Treasury Department could change the definition of "cost" for calculating capital gains, allowing taxpayers to adjust the initial value of an asset, such as a home or a share of stock, for
inflation when it sells. "If it can't get done through a legislation process, we will look at what tools at Treasury we have to do it on our own and we'll consider that," Mr. Mnuchin said, emphasizing that he had not concluded whether the
Treasury Department had the authority to act alone. "We are studying that internally, and we are also studying the economic costs and the impact on growth."
Source: A.Rappeport & J.Tankersley in N. Y. Times on Trump Cabinet
Jun 3, 2018
Elaine Chao:
Chao family foundation funds funneled into offshore firms
Over a period of five years, millions of dollars were quietly funneled to a Chao family foundation via two offshore firms that list a New York address but are not incorporated anywhere in the United States. Two entities with the same names, however,
are incorporated in the Marshall Islands, known as one of the world's most secretive offshore havens for firms seeking to avoid taxes and a preferred foreign locale for the Foremost Group, the Chao family's New York-based shipping business.
Source: The Intercept on 2018 Trump Cabinet
Feb 5, 2018
Steve Mnuchin:
Mathematically impossible to avoid tax cuts on wealthy
Faced with economic analyses showing the White House plan to cut corporate and personal income taxes provides big gains for wealthy Americans, Mnuchin called that result unavoidable. "The top 20 percent of the people pay 95 percent of the taxes," the
Treasury secretary said. "The top 10 percent of the people pay 81 percent of the taxes.""So when you're cutting taxes across the board, it's very hard not to give tax cuts to the wealthy with tax cuts to the middle class," he concluded.
Source: CNBC's John Harwood on 2017 Trump Cabinet
Oct 18, 2017
Betsy DeVos:
DeVos record includes advocating for tax cuts for the rich
In Michigan, DeVos fought for tax cuts for the wealthy at the expense of public schools, for vouchers that divert taxpayer funds from public schools to private schools, and to
allow for-profit charter school corporations to operate with no accountability while being funded by taxpayers.
Source: NEA Today (National Education Association) on Trump Cabinet
Jan 11, 2017
Page last updated: Dec 03, 2021