Why do Americans think the GOP tax reform will benefit them?
The Trump administration is finally seeing some success in its push to get its passed. Throughout November, the GOP tax plan made its way through the US House of Representatives, Senate Finance Committee and the Senate Budget Committee. The vote hit a bump this week after the Joint Committee on Taxation, a nonpartisan body, ruled that the reform will bring , adding a further $1 trillion to the deficit. ( puts the number at $1.5 trillion.) While President Donald Trump claims that the policy will provide , with GDP expansion of up to 6%, it’s not clear exactly how Americans will be affected by the proposed tax breaks. Even Trump’s treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, referred to the projected economic growth as “optimistic.”
Although the Republican tax reform has proposed (Senator Bernie Sanders has called it ““) and is projected to expand the , many view the plan as being good for businesses. This reform holds great importance to Americans, considering it was rated as the for small business owners. Small businesses are attracted by the slight tax relief in the new proposal, but it will be those who are making the most that will also benefit the most from it. As it stands, currently the top 20% of US households receive more than 80% of all the money the government pays through tax deduction. For some tax breaks, like capital gains, the number is over 90%.
These create a major misconception amongst Americans: While people see small benefits in getting some of their money back, the plan disproportionately favors the better-off. Under the Trump’s administration tax plan, the rich will continue to benefit from tax breaks the most, perpetuating what . Vice News investigates these handouts to the rich.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect 51Թ’s editorial policy.
Photo Credit: /
Support 51Թ
We rely on your support for our independence, diversity and quality.
For more than 10 years, 51Թ has been free, fair and independent. No billionaire owns us, no advertisers control us. We are a reader-supported nonprofit. Unlike many other publications, we keep our content free for readers regardless of where they live or whether they can afford to pay. We have no paywalls and no ads.
In the post-truth era of fake news, echo chambers and filter bubbles, we publish a plurality of perspectives from around the world. Anyone can publish with us, but everyone goes through a rigorous editorial process. So, you get fact-checked, well-reasoned content instead of noise.
We publish 3,000+ voices from 90+ countries. We also conduct education and training programs
on subjects ranging from digital media and journalism to writing and critical thinking. This
doesn’t come cheap. Servers, editors, trainers and web developers cost
money.
Please consider supporting us on a regular basis as a recurring donor or a
sustaining member.
Will you support FO’s journalism?
We rely on your support for our independence, diversity and quality.







Commenting Guidelines
Please read our commenting guidelines before commenting.
1. Be Respectful: Please be polite to the author. Avoid hostility. The whole point of 51Թ is openness to different perspectives from perspectives from around the world.
2. Comment Thoughtfully: Please be relevant and constructive. We do not allow personal attacks, disinformation or trolling. We will remove hate speech or incitement.
3. Contribute Usefully: Add something of value — a point of view, an argument, a personal experience or a relevant link if you are citing statistics and key facts.
Please agree to the guidelines before proceeding.