Tax Talk 2007: Ron Paul
Our next presidential candidate to be featured in our series of interviews is Ron Paul, a Republican and Texas Representative.
Here are his unedited answers to my six questions:
1. What’s the single most important tax issue facing Americans today?
Simply put, taxes are too high.
2. If you could only make one “quick fix” in terms of an extra credit, a disallowed deduction, whatever - what would it be?
I would eliminate the income tax.
3. Which is a more egregious tax on the American public: the AMT or the federal estate tax?
It depends on your income level and personal situation. Both should be eliminated.
4. It has been suggested that the IRS should be eliminated. Do you believe that this makes sense, and if you do, what would you establish in its place?
I have advocated eliminating the IRS for my entire political career. The IRS could be replaced with a flat tax or national sales tax, although any consumption tax must be coupled with prompt repeal of the 16th amendment.
5. Do you think that significant tax cuts are possible considering the current state of the economy, specifically the escalating cost of the war in Iraq?
All tax cuts must be paid for with cuts in spending. I would start by changing our interventionist foreign policy, in which we spend hundreds of billions of dollars policing the world, fighting war and subsidizing the security of other wealthy nations. By changing our foreign policy, we can cut taxes and address the burgeoning problem of exploding entitlement spending.
6. And just for fun, if Uncle Sam handed you a huge refund check right now, what would you do with it?
I would buy gold.
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Thanks, Congressman!
For more information on Representative Paul’s policies, visit his website.
