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Kelly Wallace: This week's message is tax cut

Wallace
Wallace  

Following President Bush's radio address on Saturday, CNN White House Correspondent Kelly Wallace offered details about the White House tax-cut plan.

WALLACE: The Bush administration is beginning a public relations campaign to build support for the president's approximately $1.6 trillion, across-the-board tax-cut plan. The Republican aides that I've talked to, as well as Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill, say that what we are likely to see from the president is a move away from the number -- the $1.6 trillion -- and to make a case about what impact that proposal would have on families across the country.

We saw the president do this in his radio address; he talked about how, under his plan, the average family of four would get about $1,600 back. He talked about how his plan would lower the lowest income-tax rate from 15 percent to 10 percent. He also talked about how it would lower the highest tax rate down to 33 percent. The president's message was that -- in a time of record budget surplus -- everyone who pays taxes should get some tax relief.

We're going to see the president making that point. He made the case a little bit Friday in front of the House and Senate lawmakers. And the White House has some carefully planned events scheduled for early in the week.

On Monday the president will be with a couple of families who would benefit from a lower tax bracket under his plan. Tuesday he's going to go to a small business to talk about how his plan would impact job growth at a time when the economy is slowing down, and then Wednesday he's going to highlight some of the tax-cut families. These are families he used throughout the country during the campaign, to again try to explain how his plan would benefit the average American family.

What we're going to see in terms of strategy is the Bush White House in sync with Republicans on Capitol Hill, doing their best to get away from the numbers and try to bring it home to the average person around the country when it comes to what this tax cut could mean to them.

Q: So what specifically does this mean to the average American family?

WALLACE: One part of the president's plan is definitely to lower the marginal tax rate. That is the rate at which your income is taxed per year. To give you an example, in the current tax rate structure people are taxed either at 15 percent, 28 percent, 31 percent, 36 percent, and the highest tax rate of 39 percent. That's the amount, based on your income level, of taxes that are taken out of your salary and sent to the federal government.

The president is proposing taking those five rates and making four lower rates. The new rates are 10 percent, 15 percent, 25 percent, or 33 percent. Under the president's plan, every person who's working and earning a salary would pay lower taxes. How much less you pay depends on your salary and the tax rate.

Q: So the tax proposal is what the nation will hear about this week?

WALLACE: This White House so far is sticking to an agenda, and it seems to be one of a message a week.

Week number one the president focused on education reform. Week number two was pretty much devoted to his controversial proposal to let religious organizations compete for federal funds to provide social services.

The White House is definitely making tax cuts the message of week number three. We will see a focus on almost every day this week on the president's tax cut plan, and why he thinks it will be good for Americans to boost the economy. They are carefully scripting a message, and doing their best to stick with it.



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Senate Democrats welcome Bush appearance at retreat
February 2, 2001
Congress' add-ons could force Bush tax cut above $2 trillion
February 1, 2001
Looking at economic 'bottom line,' White House pushes tax-cut plan
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Bill Schneider: The Bush Agenda
January 29, 2001

RELATED SITES:
Welcome To The White House
 • President George W. Bush

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