Newsmax Finance Insider and
CNBC senior contributor Larry Kudlow says he prefers Donald Trump's tax plan over Ted Cruz's strategy.
“All these plans have to be tweaked. Trump I like, Cruz I like,” he says, adding that both battle plans are “pro-growth.”
But Kudlow says Trump’s strategy gains the edge.
“Cruz has a value-added tax inside his plan. It comes down very heavily on businesses and very heavily on workers,” Kudlow said.
“I have for many months endorsed Trump’s tax-cut plan," Kudlow said in a series of appearances on CNBC late last week. "In particular, I like his business-tax-cut strategy, which includes a 15 percent rate for large C-corps and small S-corps along with easier repatriation and cash-expensing write-offs for new business investment," he said.
"I think it’s an excellent plan that would substantially grow the American economy and bring trillions of dollars in overseas capital back to the U.S., which in turn would foster millions of new jobs and faster growth."
Trump’s tax plan would significantly reduce marginal tax rates on individuals and businesses and increase standard deduction amounts,
Yahoo Finance explained.
"While Trump has incited anger around the fact that the United States is poor, his plan would reduce federal revenues by about $10 trillion over its first decade, according to the Tax Policy Center, a non-partisan research outfit, increasing the national debt by nearly 80% of gross domestic product by 2036," Yahoo reported.
Kudlow has said he opposes Trump’s trade policies, such as his 45 percent tariff threat on China.
Cruz is looking to collapse the seven individual tax rates to a single 10% rate. Meanwhile, his proposal would also repeal the corporate income tax, payroll taxes for Social Security and Medicare, and estate and gift taxes. He would then introduce a new 16% broad-based consumption tax. Federal tax revenues would decline by $8.6 trillion over a decade, according to Tax Policy Center.
Kudlow told
Newsmax TV that no one should "underestimate all this stuff about Hillary's a walkaway winner" in the general election.
"Nonsense," the renowned economist told "The Steve Malzberg Show" in an interview. "Take a look at her polls. Young people walking away. Women walking away. She's gone far left with Bernie Sanders. It's very, very interesting. This thing has got legs."
Kudlow said that Hillary Clinton's rival, Bernie Sanders, "is toughening up and he's going to give her a run."
As such, this presents a contrast for the Democratic Party, he told Malzberg.
"Here's the old Clinton, truly a moderate Democrat, and then here's the new Bill Clinton at his wife's beck and call for the new left wing 'Sandinista' Democratic Party.
"This is not your father's Democratic Party — and I believe that's why they're going to get beat in November," Kudlow said. "That's exactly a perfect example of the weakness of the Democratic Party."