Extending Trump’s tax cuts could ‘run the deficit into the stratosphere.’ Here’s how much that could cost.
Extending Trump’s tax cuts could ‘run the deficit into the stratosphere.’ Here’s how much that could cost.
Extending a spate of the 2017 tax cuts enacted under former President Donald Trump could cost $4.6 trillion over 10 years, according to a fresh estimate on Wednesday that’s drawing condemnation from congressional Democrats.
The estimate from the Congressional Budget Office takes into account tax cuts for individuals, estates and other provisions which are scheduled to expire at the end of 2025.
Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, has indicated he wants to make tax cuts permanent. President Joe Biden has repeatedly pledged not to raise taxes on families making $400,000 or less a year.
Two top congressional Democrats slammed the new estimate in statements on Wednesday.
“The Republican tax plan is to double down on Trump’s handouts to corporations and the wealthy, run the deficit into the stratosphere, and make it impossible to save Medicare and Social Security or help families with the cost of living in America,” said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden of Oregon.
Senate Budget Committee Chairman Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat, called the Trump tax cuts “a rotten deal for American families and small businesses” and said their impending expiration gives Congress a chance to “undo the damage.”
Changes to the tax code will depend on which party controls the White House and Congress after November’s elections.
The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Trump, meanwhile, has reportedly indicated to advisers that he favors a new middle-class tax cut if he wins the White House.