Fox Business
Expand
Browse All Video
Watch Live

You're watching...

Wesbury: A Flat Tax Would Boost Growth

Details

  • Description

    First Trust Advisors chief economist Brian Wesbury weighs in on Obama's tax plan.

  • Duration 4:49
  • Date

Clips

Also in this playlist...

Taxation

Auto-advance: ON

Auto-advance
View All

Transcript

This transcript is automatically generated

-- President Obama saying yesterday that he has been a driving force behind small businesses listen.

Let me -- Folks who create most new jobs in America -- America's small business hours.

And I've cut taxes for small business owners eighteen times.

But this morning the National Federation of Independent Businesses reporting that small business confidence that an eight month low and -- And plus what about the small businesses that will get hit with higher taxes because of the president's plan that he was unveiling yesterday.

Brian -- the chief economist at first trust advisors joins us from Wheaton Illinois -- first to make.

Of what good the president has done for small business -- -- Not good.

Look look that the best environment for small businesses not one where you have a little tax rate -- here if you fill out paperwork there.

Or if he will give -- tax credit if you do something we want like put in solar power.

Those aren't the kinds of tax breaks that that help small business grow they're not the kind of tax breaks that help the economy grow.

What we really need it if I were king for a day I would just put in a flat.

Tax as simple one page one form tax system.

You know -- the president definitely has tinkered around but all that tinkering.

Is actually holding back the economy it's it's it's -- if you have to fill out 22 pages to get a tax credit to put a solar panel and you're not helping the economy grow in fact -- re directing resources to areas that aren't.

Active is just allowing business need to do.

And Brian his proposal to raise taxes on those making more than 200000 dollars a year.

The president said that 3% of small business owners.

Would be would only be hit by that but -- bond -- said.

Taxation the joint tac net business saying come of one point 3000000000008% of that will an economy -- still struggling residents.

Yet you can't.

The bush yeah allowing the bush tax cuts to expire would be devastating for this economy I I think it would throw us into a recession and and so -- you know like just like back in 2000 intent.

All of this stuff we're seeing now is negotiation.

It's positioning.

I I think I think in the end.

We're going to avoid those big tax hikes next year but clearly there's going to be a lot of noise and a lot of politics about it this year.

And all of that noise creates uncertainty.

And all of that uncertainty.

Hold back holds back small business it keeps them from making decisions so.

So you know we should just get Britain -- we should lock in the bush tax rates for ever.

And if we did that that would be the best thing we could do for the economy.

They that you wrote about recently that people describe our economy -- a zombie economy you dismiss that case and I do see.

Positive play a positive areas of growth.

Right yep yep for the last three years -- -- -- we've been relatively optimistic on the economy and and act I guess I am aware of tenant.

Finally decided that this is all playing out is there's up a political.

View of the economy.

And there's a view that it's good for that you know they did investors ought to take and over the past three years the economy has been growing.

Corporate profits have been growing we've invented new things the iPad the Smartphones got better apps.

Fracking all of these things are great and if you've invested in that you've done very very well.

But on the political side if you will we still have 8% unemployment the economy's growing 2% a year when it should be growing 4% a year.

And that's because government is too big so what's fascinating is that the the economy's growing the entrepreneur.

Is boosting growth.

Even though were making mistakes on the political side so that's how I can be optimistic.

And yet about the economy and the market and profits.

Even though oh I think there's there's things we need to fix on the political side it.

We're growing it's just we're just not growing anywhere near what we should.

And the reason is is that government spends too much.

Uncertainty is too high and tax rates are not.

Designed -- to help a growing economy not.

And it changed you know election year mr.

Wes Barrett thank you very much yet.

It is great that the CEO Brian west there.

Load More