Comparing the Democratic and Republican Presidential Candidates? Tax Plans

How big is the gulf between Democrats and Republicans when it comes to taxes? Some of the presidential candidates talk of unity and bipartisanship, but the differences between the two major parties on tax issues are quite real. This is the subject of an editorial published last week in Investor’s Business Daily, written by Grover Norquistt:

George Wallace famously announced that there wasn’t a dime’s worth of difference between the Republican and Democratic parties. But in the 2008 election, there’s at least $2 trillion difference between them.

For starters, every single Democrat that entered the presidential primaries supported ending the Bush tax cuts in 2010. That means raising the capital gains tax to 20% from 15%, increasing the top marginal tax rate on income to 39.6%, increasing the death tax from zero in 2010 to 55% above $1 million and hiking the tax on dividends to 39.6% from 15%.

Over a 10-year period, that would raise $2 trillion above the present projected tax burden. Every single Republican who ran for the nomination—from Ron Paul to John McCain—promised to maintain the tax cuts of 2001 and 2003. A $2 trillion tax cut, compared with allowing the tax cuts to lapse.

And that’s just for openers.

For more on the candidates’ tax plans take a look at our Presidential Candidate Tax Plan Comparison page.