The Biden administration's plan to raise taxes couldn't be a "worse idea in the middle of a pandemic," Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., said Wednesday.
"I think most of America, whether you're Republican or Democrat, is going to be against tax hikes," Mace said on Fox Business' "Mornings With Maria." "They're using key buzz words to tax the rich and to pay their fair share, that companies should pay their fair share but somebody has to pay that bill and that's on the backs of hard-working Americans."
The White House is planning several tax increases to pay for a broad infrastructure and jobs package and is likely to repeal parts of former President Donald Trump's 2017 tax law, according to multiple reports citing those familiar with the discussions.
Proposals reportedly under consideration at the moment include raising the corporate tax rate to 28% from 21%; pulling back tax preference for pass-through businesses like limited-liability companies or partnerships; raising the income tax rate for people earning more than $400,000; expansions of the estate tax; and a higher capital gains tax rate for people who earn at least $1 million a year.
The planned tax hikes could raise as much as $2.1 trillion over a decade, according to an independent analysis by the Tax Policy Center.
The increases will come on the heels of Biden signing a $1.9 trillion package into law that was framed as COVID-19 legislation, but that contains billions of dollars in carve outs for myriad liberal pet policies. With the series of gargantuan bills and the tax hikes looming, Mace said the American people won't buy the plans.
"Over 90% of that package had nothing to do with COVID-19 relief," she said. "You saw [Senate Majority Leader] Chuck Schumer ask for a bridge in New York. You saw [House Speaker] Nancy Pelosi asking for underground rails to Silicon Valley in her backyard, all wasteful spending. Don't get me wrong, spending has been a problem on both sides of the aisle. Washington has a spending problem, not a revenue problem."
Even in the middle of the pandemic, states have been collecting record revenues, Mace added.
"When we talk about pulling people out of poverty, the last thing you want to do is raise taxes and keep spending," she said. "We're only going to slow down our ability to get out of and recover economically from COVID-19 with spending plans and tax hikes. It's going to hurt wages. Fewer companies will start fewer jobs at lower wages. It's going to hurt every person in this country."
Further, many programs won't end up reinvesting in the economy, despite Democrat assurances, Mace said.
"They're going to keep people on the government dole, and when the government is responsible for you or your family, you have less incentive to work," she said. "Look at the COVID-19 package we just did. We incentivized more unemployment with that package. There are employers in South Carolina who are desperate to find employees."
Mace said plans to raise the corporate tax rate to 28% will only serve "to send jobs overseas."
"There will be an exodus, from places like South Carolina and all over the country, of jobs going overseas," she said.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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