Senator and likely 2016 presidential candidate Marco Rubio (R-FL) got a two-part interview on Fox’s Your World yesterday. The segments lasted a total of 16 minutes even though he hasn’t declared his presidential aspirations yet.
In the second part, Rubio discussed his tax-cut plans.
Host Neil Cavuto described it as, “If you simplify it, they will pay.” He gave more particulars: “Fifteen percent for couples up to and under $150,000, $150,000 and over, 35%. You would also get rid of capital gains taxes, dividend-related taxes.” However, Cavuto also “asked” if the plan is “almost too simple for words, and does it actually work against you?” He noted that “someone like Mitt Romney doesn’t have to pay capital gains tax.”
Rubio filibustered like he was in the Senate.
RUBIO: This tax plan is not designed to benefit any single individual, it’s designed to benefit the American economy by doing two things: being pro-growth, and being pro-family. On the pro growth side, we want to make America the best place in the world for businesses to take their profits and reinvest it in creating new jobs, new factories, buying new machines, etc. And the way you do that is you tell them, the more money you invest in America, the less you owe in taxes. That’s why we eliminate the capital gains tax, that’s why we eliminate taxes on dividends, that’s why we lower the corporate tax rate to a globally competitive 25%. …You do these things, you’re going to have rapid economic growth that’s going to create millions of better paying jobs for all Americans.
Rubio also claimed, “80% of Americans will be paying on the 15% rate, that’s a tax cut for them.”
Cavuto again offered some push back. He said, “Critics will say, ‘Oh, he’s a friend of the super rich. Someone like Mitt Romney, who gets all of his income from capital gains, etc., walks off scot-free.’”
Rubio deflected. “I always laugh because a majority of people that accuse me of that happen to be millionaires,” he said, “and they’re lecturing me instead of a bartender and a maid about the plight of the middle class.”
Cavuto laughed heartily.
Rubio moved on to discuss “entitlement reform.” He said, “We cannot bring our long-term debt under control if we do not reform and save Medicare and Social Security.” Rubio didn’t explain what he meant by “saving” them. But he did say, “It just takes the political will” to do it. He suggested means testing and then said “there’s no way around” the fact that “my Medicare is going to look different from my mother’s.”
But as nicely explained by DailyKos, Rubio’s plan would add $2.4 trillion to the debt. 50% of the benefits of lower capital gains rates go to the top 0.1% and 75% benefit the top 1%.
The rest of us make due with less when we retire.
That was not mentioned by either Rubio or Cavuto.
Watch it below, from yesterday's Your World. You can watch Part 1 of the interview here.