Romney Campaign Press Release - On Fiscal Policy, Romney Offers a Better Way Forward

"Mitt Romney's bold plan will immediately restart America's economic engine, grow our economy, and put people back to work. It is a comprehensive, pro-growth, fiscally responsible plan that will make the United States economically competitive by lowering tax rates and reforming the tax code. More so than any other candidate, Mitt Romney offers a plan that is realistic, responsible, and America's best opportunity to get our economy back on track." —Al Hubbard, Former Director of the National Economic Council

Mitt Romney Is Offering A Bold, Pro-Growth Set Of Policies That Will Reform The Tax Code, Encourage Hiring, And Jumpstart The Recovery:

Promote Pro-Growth Changes In Individual Taxation: America's individual tax code applies relatively high marginal tax rates on a narrow tax base. Those high rates discourage work and entrepreneurship, as well as savings and investment. With 54 percent of private sector workers employed outside of corporations, individual rates also define the incentives for job-creating businesses. Lower marginal tax rates secure for all Americans the economic gains from tax reform.

• Make Permanent, Across-The-Board 20 Percent Cut In Marginal Rates. This bold stroke reduces the tax on the next dollar of income earned for all taxpayers. The new top rate of 28 percent returns to the top rate signed by President Reagan in 1986.

• Promote Savings And Investment For The American People.  Mitt Romney will maintain the current 15 percent rate on income from qualified dividends and capital gains.  He will cut taxes further on lower- and middle-income Americans by ensuring that families with an annual income below $200,000 will pay no taxes on income from capital gains, interest, and qualified dividends.  These low tax rates will create powerful incentives for Americans to save and invest, while spurring business investment and economic growth.

• Abolish The Death Tax. Eliminating the death tax will allow families to pass assets between generations without complicated tax avoidance schemes and without breaking up family businesses.

• Repeal The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). The AMT was originally implemented in the 1970s with the purpose of ensuring that the wealthiest of Americans could not artificially reduce their tax burden. But if Congress fails to pass the annual AMT patch, many middle-income Americans will become ensnared in the AMT trap. It should be repealed immediately to eliminate harmful distortions in the tax code, and replaced with a simpler tax system that reduces tax avoidance schemes.

Make The Corporate Tax System Globally Competitive: The U.S. economy's 35 percent corporate tax rate is among the highest in the industrial world, reducing the ability of our nation's businesses to compete in the global economy and to invest and create jobs at home. By limiting investment and growth, the high rate of corporate tax also hurts U.S. wages.

• Cut The Corporate Rate To 25 Percent. It is vital that the U.S. move to quickly reduce the corporate tax rate and put American companies on a level playing field. The high U.S. corporate tax rate handicaps the nation's overall economy in competition with the rest of the world.

• Strengthen And Make Permanent The R&D Tax Credit. This credit promotes innovation in both manufacturing and non-manufacturing industries, and helps businesses plan their innovation spending.  With a strong, permanent credit, companies will now be able to invest for the future with confidence.

• Repeal The Corporate Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). One major drawback of the Corporate AMT is its effect of penalizing companies that invest in capital equipment. A growing economy depends on robust capital investment. Unfortunately, corporations that are subject to the Corporate AMT are unfairly hit by strict depreciation rules. Due to this chilling effect on capital investment, the Corporate AMT must be fully repealed. Investment will no longer be penalized, spurring labor productivity, an increase in American incomes, and greater economic prosperity.

Reform Entitlements And Reduce Spending To Historic Norms: As he announced in his fiscal plan last November, Romney is committed to reducing federal spending to 20 percent of GDP by 2016 while reversing President Obama's dangerous cuts to national defense.  Achieving this goal will require spending cuts of approximately $500 billion. The result will be to return government's share of what this nation produces to the level pre-dating the financial crisis and the rapid escalation of spending under President Obama. Specifically, the plan:

• Cuts Programs That America Cannot Afford: The first step in this direction is to repeal Obamacare.

• Sends To The States Programs That They Can Implement Better: For instance, block-grant Medicaid.

• Improves Efficiency And Effectiveness: What the government needs to do, it should do more effectively.

• Preserves Social Security: For younger generations, gradually raise the retirement age and index the growth in benefits for higher-income retirees to inflation instead of wages.

• Strengthens Medicare: For younger generations, create a premium support system that gives each senior the freedom to choose among competing private plans and traditional fee-for-service Medicare.

Senator Santorum's Fiscal Record, On The Other Hand, Leaves Much To Be Desired:

Santorum Has Admitted He Is "No Longer A Deficit Hawk ... I'll Tell You Why. I Had To Spend The Surpluses." "Confronted with projected deficits until fiscal 2007, senior GOP lawmakers are backing away from long-standing rhetoric about the government's duty to live within its means. 'I came to the House as a real deficit hawk, but I am no longer a deficit hawk,' said Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.). 'I'll tell you why. I had to spend the surpluses. Deficits make it easier to say no.'" (Hans Nichols, "Leadership Lines Up With Deficit Doves," The Hill, 2/5/03)

Federal Spending Increased By Roughly 80% During Santorum's Time In The Senate. In 1995, Santorum's first year in the Senate, federal spending was approximately $1.516 trillion. By 2007, when Santorum left the Senate, spending had increased to approximately $2.729 trillion. ("Fiscal Year 2012 Historical Tables Of The U.S. Government," Office of Management and Budget, 2/14/11)

"Santorum Acknowledged Voting To Raise The Federal Debt Ceiling At Least Five Times While In Congress." (Charles Babington, "Gingrich Defends His Attacks," The Associated Press, 1/15/12)

Santorum Brought Over $1 Billion In Pork-Barrel Spending Back To Pennsylvania. "In all, Taxpayers for Common Sense estimated, Mr. Santorum helped secure more than $1 billion in earmarks during his Senate career, which stretched from 1995 through 2006." (Michael Luo and Mike McIntire, "Donors Gave As Santorum Won Earmarks," The New York Times, 1/15/12)

• Santorum Was "An Avid User Of Earmarks When He Was In Congress." "Former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, an avid user of earmarks when he was in Congress, said he had reversed his position on the pet spending projects, which have fallen sharply out of favor with politicians of both parties." (Paul West, "Mitt Romney Defends His Massachusetts Healthcare Plan At 'Tea Party' Forum," Los Angeles Times, 4/29/11)

• Santorum "Admitted... He Was Once An Ardent Earmarker." "Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, who is becoming less and less coy about his 2012 presidential aspirations, admitted during a luncheon Monday that he was once an ardent earmarker, but now believes they should be banned." (Colby Itkowitz, "Santorum Stumps In New Hampshire," Allentown Morning Call, 11/29/10)

• Santorum: "I Have Had A Lot Of Earmarks. In Fact, I'm Very Proud Of All The Earmarks I've Put In Bills. I'll Defend Earmarks." (Fox News' "Hannity," 2/26/09)

Club For Growth: Toward The End Of His Tenure, Santorum's Spending Record Got Even Worse. "In the 2003-2004 session of Congress, Santorum sponsored or cosponsored 51 bills to increase spending, and failed to sponsor or co-sponsor even one spending cut proposal.  In his last Congress (2005-2006), he had one of the biggest spending agendas of any Republican..." ("2012 Presidential White Paper #4: Former Senator Rick Santorum," Club For Growth, 6/6/11)