Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump unveiled his long-awaited tax reform agenda Monday in the same gilded Fifth Avenue skyscraper where his bid for the White House first began.
In true Trump fashion, the billionaire’s tax proposals demonstrate his eagerness to distinguish himself from his Republican opponents. Trump remains in first place in the Washington Examiner‘s presidential power rankings.
His plan features a “zero rate” for millions of low-income Americans and tax cuts for the middle class, and targets the hedge funds and overseas investors he’s repeatedly blasted on the campaign trail.
“Republicans may not like the full extent of Mr. Trump’s tax plan, but I’ll tell you who’s going to like it: all Americans — Republicans, Democrats, all the voters,” Trump surrogate Michael Cohen told CNN hours before the candidate’s press conference.
Here’s how the federal tax code would change under a Trump presidency:
Individuals earning less than $25,000 annually and couples making less than $50,000 a year would enjoy a federal income tax rate of 0 percent.
Trump would consolidate the seven existing individual tax brackets down to just four brackets: 25 percent, 20 percent, 10 percent and 0 percent.
“No business of any size, from a Fortune 500 to a mom-and-pop shop, would pay more than 15 percent of their business income in taxes.”
Marriage penalties, death taxes and double taxation would be eliminated under the Trump tax plan.
Trump would end the “deferral of taxes on corporate earned income abroad,” and a implement a one-time repatriation of corporate cash held overseas at a 10 percent tax rate.
“All of this does not add to our deficit,” the New York businessman told supporters at Trump Towers on Monday.
Trump has been slow to develop policy particulars to accompany much of his campaign rhetoric, detailing his opposition to gun control and lenient immigration laws in just two public position papers to date. His tax plan marks the third issue on which he’s now offered substantive policies.
Still, the real estate mogul leads nearly every GOP candidate by double digits in most national polls. According to the latest RealClearPolitics polling average, Trump earns 23.4 percent support among registered Republicans, putting him 6.4 points ahead of second-place candidate Ben Carson.
