October 21, 2024
On what issues do supporters of presidential hopefuls Donald Trump and Kamala Harris agree?
Well, a significant portion of people in both parties want more spending and tax breaks. And let’s be real here – what kind of person are you if you’re against newborn child tax credits?!
Never mind that it would take a miracle to balance the budget or even get close. Americans agree on spending more and taxing less.
And it crosses the aisle. According to a Wall Street Journal survey, six out of 10 economic policies proposed by Trump and Harris received support from almost 50% or more of Republicans, Democrats, and independents.
For instance, 49% of Republicans support Harris’s plan to provide a $6,000 tax credit for newborns, 60% support her plan to cap out-of-pocket spending on prescription drugs, and 75% support her plan to cap insulin prices at $35.
On the other side, 76% of Democrats support Trump’s plan to eliminate taxes on Social Security income. And 76% support his plan to eliminate taxes on tips.
Where do we find the revenue to fund all this? Trump and Harris provide no specifics of course, but voters don’t seem to care.
The Journal asked people if they’d support these policies even if there were negative side effects, like increasing the national debt. Not surprisingly, support didn’t really dip much.
Deficit reduction remains popular conceptually. But when it comes to concrete proposals, a new benefit or tax cut beats deficit reduction every time.
Before the Trump/Harris debate, 61% of Americans said it was “very important” and another 30% “somewhat important” that the candidates talked about their plans to reduce the deficit. Neither candidate mentioned it once.
If the roof’s not leaking, keep the party going, I guess. But I’ll say it again – at some point we will be forced to deal with runaway spending and debt.