Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s plan for fundamental tax reform, with an optional flat tax, is a fiscal game-changer and demonstrably superior to the proposals of rivals Herman Cain and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. In the 1990s, the National Commission on Economic Growth and Tax Reform (the Kemp Commission) chaired by the late Jack Kemp created the framework for a flat tax. This research was later refined and advanced by Steve Forbes, and the flat tax became central to his presidential campaign.

Since then, the flat tax has caught on worldwide, especially in Eastern Europe. Fair and predictable, it has led to extraordinary growth. It removes government from the business of picking winners and losers, bringing everyone together to decide on a common tax rate.