- A former Trump economic advisor said in a resurfaced interview that he supports Biden’s proposed corporate tax rate of 28%.
- “I’m okay at 28%,” Gary Cohn told Yahoo Finance last year.
- His remarks are likely to be quoted by Democrats as Biden advocates corporate tax increases to fund infrastructure spending.
- You can find more articles on Insider’s business page.
There is one unlikely proponent of President Joe Biden’s proposed 28% corporate tax rate: a former top advisor to President Donald Trump who served as the architect of his 2017 tax bill, cutting the tax rate from 35% to 21%.
A video surfaced Wednesday of Gary Cohn, former director of the National Economic Council under Trump, saying he supported a corporate tax hike. It was published by the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank.
– Will Ragland (@citizenwillis) on April 7, 2021
“At 28%, I’m actually fine,” Cohn said in an interview with Yahoo Finance last year. “The level we reached in our tax plan on the corporate side was actually a little lower than I thought we had to go.”
He continued, “Coming down in the low 20s was probably lower than we had to. I always thought there was a compromise rate in the mid-20s that made sense.”
The 2017 Republican Tax Act lowered the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% and temporarily lowered the tax rates for individuals. Many experts say that large companies and wealthy Americans have benefited disproportionately from the tax cuts.
Cohn’s remarks are likely to be quoted by Democrats in the coming months as the Biden government pushes a huge infrastructure plan. Part one proposes new federal spending of $ 2.3 trillion on roads and bridges, home elderly care, broadband, and clean energy incentives.
Republicans and business leaders are strongly opposed to corporate tax hikes, arguing it would hurt job growth and hurt the country’s competitiveness abroad at a vulnerable stage of recovery. Still, some business leaders, like Lyft President John Zimmer, say they support a 28% corporate rate.
Democrats argue that they want to reverse many parts of the GOP tax law to improve the playing field between average Americans and the middle class.
“It’s just not fair. It is not fair to the rest of the American taxpayers. We will try to put an end to it. Not to fleece you – 28%,” Biden said in the White House on Wednesday. “If you’re a mother, father, cop, firefighter, cop, etc., you pay almost as much in your income tax.”
Democratic MP Don Beyer, chairman of the Joint Economic Committee, said in a statement emailed to Insider, “It’s good to see business leaders, as well as former top Republican economic adviser Gary Cohn, are advocating a reasonable increase in the rate.”
The White House on Wednesday unveiled a tax plan that aims to raise $ 2.5 trillion over 15 years to cover its expenses. It includes, among other things, an increase in corporate tax to 28%, an increase in IRS funding for better enforcement, and the introduction of a global minimum tax.