The Texas governor will release a full economic plan next week, but in the meantime he wants to replace America's federal income rates
Texas Gov. Rick Perry is calling for replacing the federal income tax with a flat tax, a conservative idea long condemned by liberals as a regressive burden on lower- and middle-income taxpayers.
5 Takeaways From the GOP Debate
Huntsman Mocks Vegas 'Game Show'
Unlike in Israel, Missing U.S. Soldiers' Plight Not a National Struggle
The Republican presidential hopeful previewed his economic plan for the country at the Western Republican Leadership Conference in Las Vegas, but offered few details. He said he would unveil a proposal next week calling for creation of a flat tax, which would replace the present system of graduated tax rates based on income with a single rate for all taxpayers, regardless of income.
Perry told an audience of about 150 Republicans that his plan would also include a ban on congressional earmarks, passage of a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution, spending cuts, and entitlement reform. He plans to unveil details in a speech on Tuesday in South Carolina.
"A change election requires a new direction, and not more of the same," Perry said. "And I come by my conservatism very authentically, not by convenience. I offer the American people a new direction. My economic plan is rooted in what has worked in my home state." He said he would scrap "the current 3 million words of the American tax code" and replace it with "something simple: a flat tax."
