Economy Now
Romney on deductions: I'll tell you later
June 18, 2012: 11:06 AM ET
One of the most strident criticisms of Mitt Romney's economic plan -- even among conservatives -- is the lack of detail on how he will support the revenue side of the government's ledger while pushing through massive tax cuts.
Romney wants to cut marginal tax rates on income by 20%. He wants to eliminate the estate tax and the Alternative Minimum Tax. And he wants to cut the corporate tax rate by 10 percentage points.
That's a lot of tax cutting. Yet Romney insists his plan will be revenue neutral -- that is, the government will collect just as much in taxes. Part of the additional revenue will result from accelerated economic growth, the campaign says, and the rest will come from limits placed on deductions, exemptions and credits currently available to top-level income earners.
Some deductions, like those available for charitable donations and interest paid on mortgages, are quite popular. So which deductions will Romney limit?
The candidate wouldn't say when he introduced the latest iteration of his tax plan in February, and he's not saying now, either. Asked by CBS host Bob Schieffer about his bashfulness, Romney punted again, suggesting that he might not even address the issue until after the election.
"Well, we'll go through that process with Congress as to which of all the different deductions and exemptions ... " Romney said before Schieffer interrupted to offer a few possible deductions that might be looked at.
But even when asked again, Romney offered no specifics.
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Romney hints at tax changes
One of the biggest knocks on Mitt Romney this election cycle is that his policy proposals have lacked specificity -- especially when it comes to how much the government should tax, and what programs it should spend that revenue on.
But on Sunday, a few new details were revealed as reporters were able to eavesdrop on a closed Romney fundraiser.
We know Romney wants to cut income tax rates MORE
Charles Riley - Apr 16, 2012 11:43 AM ET -
Obama's army of tax-paying secretaries
A phalanx of administrative assistants and their millionaire bosses joined President Obama onstage Wednesday at the White House as he once again called on Congress to pass his "Buffett Rule."
Why the odd pairing of secretaries and millionaires? The general principle behind the rule is that millionaires and billionaires like investor Warren Buffett shouldn't pay a lower percentage of their income in federal taxes than middle-class households, and specifically their secretaries.
Buffett MORE
Charles Riley - Apr 11, 2012 1:04 PM ET -
Romney: My tax plan 'can't be scored'
Like every Republican presidential candidate, Mitt Romney wants to cut a whole bunch of taxes.
Just two of the more expensive provisions would reduce revenue by more than $3.4 trillion over a decade. Meanwhile, the campaign, and the candidate, insist that the plan is "budget neutral."
So one would expect something of a plan to fill in that huge revenue hole created by the tax cuts.
The campaign says the tax cuts will MORE
Charles Riley - Mar 7, 2012 2:35 PM ET
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