BOULDER, Colorado — CNBC anchor Larry Kudlow, a noted economist, tells Breitbart News in the spin room here that 2016 GOP frontrunner Donald Trump’s corporate tax plan—a 15 percent rate—is “spot on.”
“I’ve endorsed Donald’s 15 percent corporate tax rate many times,” Kudlow told Breitbart News in a brief interview during a commercial break.
I don’t know all the details about his entire tax program, it’s certainly moving in the right direction lowering rates but specifically on the 15 percent corporate tax rate I have argued for it for several years. And by the way, I happen to think it would grow the economy, attack capital from all over the world—China’s at 25, we’d be at 15, it would easily pay for itself. Easily. I believe it would lower the deficit. Again, I can’t speak for the whole plan—I can speak for the 15 percent corporate tax rate. He’s spot on. And I’m honored that he mentioned me. Honored.
Kudlow’s comments to Breitbart News come after an exchange in the opening part of the CNBC debate here where co-moderator John Harwood asked Trump extraordinarily contentiously about his tax plan.
“Mr. Trump, you’ve done very well on this campaign so far by promising to build a wall and make another country pay for it, send 11 million people out of the country, cut taxes $10 trillion without increasing the deficit, and make Americans better off because your greatness would replace the stupidity and incompetence of others,” Harwood opened the debate by asking Trump. “Let’s be honest. Is this a comic book version of a Presidential campaign?”
In Trump’s response he cited Kudlow’s previous praise of his tax plan.
“It’s not a comic book, and it’s not a very nicely asked question, the way you say that,” Trump said.
Larry Kudlow, as an example, who I have a lot of respect for, loves my tax plan. We are reducing taxes to 15 percent. We’re bringing corporate taxes down, bringing money back in, corporate inversions. We have $2-1/2 trillion outside of the United States, which we want to bring back in. As far as the wall is concerned, we’re going to build the wall, we’re going to create a border. We’re going to let people in, but they’re going to come in legally. They are going to come in legally. And it’s something that can be done, and I get questioned about that. They built The Great Wall of China. That’s 13,000 miles.
Here, we actually need a thousand, because we have natural barriers. So we need a thousand. We can do a wall. We’re going to have a big, fat beautiful door right in the middle of the wall. We are going to have people come in, but they are coming in legally. And Mexico is going to pay for the wall, because Mexico — I love the Mexican people, I respect the Mexican leaders, but the leaders are much sharper, smarter and more cunning than our leaders. And just to finish, people say, Oh, how are you going to get Mexico to pay? A politician — other than the people on this stage. I don’t want to insult — a politician cannot get them to pay. I can. We lose. We have a trade imbalance of $50 billion.
From there, Harwood followed up by asking Trump specifically about his tax plan. “I talked to economic advisors who have served presidents of both parties,” Harwood asked. “They said that you have as much chance of cutting taxes that much without increasing the deficit as you would of flying away from that podium by flapping your arms around.”
Trump again cited Kudlow in his response.
“Then you have to get rid of Larry Kudlow, who sits on your panel, who is a great guy, who came out the other day and said, ‘I love Trump’s tax plan,’” Trump said.
Looks like Kudlow confirms: He agrees with Trump, and Harwood may been out of line in those questions.
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