The Clash of Social Visions

The Clash of Social Visions
The social vision embedded in the House Republican tax plan is straightforward: to take money away from affluent professionals in blue states
and to pump up corporations as the engine for broad economic growth.
The Republican vision is that companies that thrive in the red states, like manufacturing and agriculture, are more important for the country than the industries
that thrive in blue states, like finance, media, the academy and the movies.
As The Wall Street Journal noted, under the plan a married couple would face
a 45.6 percent top rate on earnings between $1.2 million and $1.6 million.
Over the past few decades when Republicans have talked about tax reform, they have generally
talked about sharply cutting the top marginal rate to 25 percent or even 15 percent.
Fourth, the bill preserves high top marginal tax rates on individual income and even raises rates in some cases on the very rich.
These are mostly in places like California, New York, Boston and Washington, D. C.
Second, the Republican plan cuts the deduction for state and local taxes.