Continuing his recent descent into supply-side boosterism, Rudy Giuliani told supporters listening to a National House Party Night webcast on Friday that tax cuts increase revenue (23:55 in the clip):
Remember, you collect more money with lower taxes than you do with higher taxes. I reduced the income tax in New York by twenty-four percent, and I was collecting forty percent more revenues from the lower tax than the higher tax.
As always, I will point out that nearly every economist disagrees with this claim. Even Bush administration economists have repeatedly contradicted President Bush on this point. But Giuliani, Mitt Romney, Fred Thompson, and John McCain are all touting it in an effort to win over economic conservatives. It's a good thing supply-siders are "rather thin on the ground lately"!
Teh Stupid iz Rudy!
Well so much for drowning the beast in the bathtub. I mean, which is it? Are you shrinking it and drowning it, or are you bloating it? Answer: BOTH!!!
Posted by: Jazgar | October 02, 2007 at 02:33 PM
Dude, you can't give recently privatized no-bid contracts to your cronies if you actually keep revenues at viable levels. Don't you understand the plight of the rent-seeker?
i can't believe this retard will be our next president--wait, i can
Posted by: some guy | October 02, 2007 at 03:09 PM
I guess the question here is does the economy grow if taxes are cut? It's certainly doubtful that the claim can be made that tax cuts pay for themselves, and to what extent; the opposite argument is that if you raise taxes does the economy slow? And are those tax increases offset by other goodies such as a 500,000 tax free homeowner exemption for example? Is the tax code so convoluted that no one knows how people benefit?
Too many variables when it comes to taxes to draw conclusions such as "tax cuts pay for themselves" or "tax cuts don't pay for themselves".
Posted by: Sickles | October 08, 2007 at 09:43 AM