Albert R. Hunt, Columnist

Count the Broken Promises in the GOP Tax Plan

Trump said it won't break the budget or favor the wealthy. Of course, it will.

September 28, 2017 at 12:00 AM UTC

Corrected

September 28, 2017 at 2:07 PM UTC

Albert R. Hunt is a former Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He was the executive editor of Bloomberg News, before which he was a reporter, bureau chief and executive Washington editor at the Wall Street Journal.

The polo party.
Photographer: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Provide news feedback or report an error

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

This article is for subscribers only.

The Republican tax plan, still only a rough blueprint, has lost its first battle: It doesn't live up to the promises that President Donald Trump and top Republicans made.

The proposal, unveiled in a short document, proposes to slash corporate and individual taxes, claiming that this loss of federal revenue will be offset by eliminating unspecified deductions. Based on what's available, however, it's clear the plan won't deny net tax cuts to the wealthy, will not be revenue-neutral, and will not stick it to wealthy hedge-fund and private-equity executives. All these elements are at variance with commitments made by Trump and prominent Republicans.