Scott Pelley’s “60 Minutes” interview with GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump on Sunday night was, functionally, more of a prelude to the full Donald Trump tax plan that was released today.
In a Wall Street Journal article entitled “Trump Plan Cuts Taxes for Millions,” details of the billionaire’s tax plan were finally revealed in detail Monday morning. Trump followed up with a press conference early Monday afternoon to further explain the key points in his proposal, plus address questions from the press. In typical Trump fashion, he boldly told the media that “there will be people in the very upper echelons that aren’t thrilled with [his tax proposal].”
While that may be true, it’s not exactly news his plan is expected to grind a few gears. Back on Sept. 13, Trump gave a rough outline of his tax intentions on the CBS News’ “Face the Nation.” His proposal at the time was controversial in that it contained tax hikes for America’s super rich. He also talked about the consolidation of the current seven tax brackets down to just four. Trump described those brackets as follows:
- Up to $30,000/annual income, the rate would be 1%.
- From $30,000 to $100,000, the rate would be 5%.
- From $100,000 to $1 million, the rate would be 10%.
- For $1 million and above, the rate would be 15%.
But we saw today Trump has shifted these rates shifted significantly – the largest bracket now includes a zero percent income tax rate…
Details of the Newest Donald Trump Tax Plan
That’s right, the largest portion of American taxpayers in the country will be exempt from paying taxes altogether, according to Trump’s tax reform proposal. This was the one detail revealed in the “60 Minutes” broadcast that left host Scott Pelley flabbergasted.
According to Trump’s new plan, instead of the previously suggested one percent for the United States’ lowest tax bracket, the number would be a zero percent tax rate. “Under the Trump plan, no federal income tax would be levied against individuals earning less than $25,000 and married couples earning less than $50,000,” reported The Wall Street Journal.
Here is what WSJ reported about the remaining three tax brackets:
- Married couples with annual incomes ranging from $50,000 to $100,000 annually would fall under the 10% bracket. (No individual annual income qualifications were specified for this bracket.)
- The 15% bracket would consist of married taxpayers earning $200,000 to $300,000 a year. (No individual annual income qualifications were specified for this bracket.)
- The new 25% top bracket would apply to married couples with incomes in excess of $300,000 who are currently subjected to rates as high as 39.6%. (No individual annual income qualifications were specified for this bracket.)
Also included in Trump’s proposal were cuts to the top capital gains rate from its current 23.8% down to 20%. Alternative minimum tax rates would be eliminated altogether.
In reaction to the idea of a zero percent tax rate disclosure for America’s largest portion of the taxpaying population, Pelley said that it sounded nice, sure, but quickly reminded the entrepreneur of the United States’ current $19 trillion federal debt. How, he wondered, would Trump’s tax proposal address that frightening number?
Simple: Bring jobs back home from overseas, said Trump. “We’re going to grow the economy.”
You see, Trump intends to eliminate or decrease tax loopholes commonly exploited by high-income taxpayers in the current tax code. This would bring in an influx of long-overdue tax revenue to boost the economy. The billionaire also intends to slap a 10% tax on multinational corporations with money invested overseas. He stated he believes this will prompt many large businesses to move their money back to U.S. soil, where it would boost the economy and jobs market.
“Republicans may not like the full extent of Mr. Trump’s tax plan,” Trump adviser Michael Cohen said to CNN‘s “New Day” on Monday morning. “But I’ll tell you who’s going to like it: all Americans – Republicans, Democrats, all the voters.”
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