What the CBO says about Trump's proposed tax cuts and the national debt
What the CBO says about Trump's proposed tax cuts and the national debt
The political headwinds stalling President Trump’s massive tax extension and budget cuts were hit by a powerful dose of accounting. The Congressional Budget Office reports the current budget package would add more than $2 trillion to the national debt over 10 years. Marc Goldwein, senior policy director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, joins to discuss.
Read the full article on CBS Politics
Truth Analysis
Analysis Summary:
The CBS Politics article is mostly accurate, stating that the CBO reports Trump's proposed tax cuts would add over $2 trillion to the national debt over 10 years. This is supported by multiple sources, although the exact figures vary slightly. There is a moderate bias due to the framing of the issue and the selection of a guest who is likely to be critical of the tax cuts.
Detailed Analysis:
- Claim:** "The Congressional Budget Office reports the current budget package would add more than $2 trillion to the national debt over 10 years."
- Verification Source #1: Supports the claim that Trump's tax cuts will add to the deficit.
- Verification Source #2: States that extending the Trump tax cuts would add $4.6 trillion to the deficit. This contradicts the "$2 trillion" figure, but refers to extending the cuts, not necessarily the initial impact.
- Verification Source #3: States the bill will add $2.4T to the deficit.
- Verification Source #4: States the bill will add $2.4 trillion to future deficits.
- Verification Source #5: Does not provide a specific dollar amount, but discusses the CBO report on the tax cuts.
- Claim:** "President Trump's massive tax extension and budget cuts..."
- Verification Source #1: Refers to "Trump's big tax cuts bill."
- Verification Source #2: Refers to "Trump tax cuts."
- Verification Source #3: Refers to "President Donald Trump's big bill" and "trillions in tax cuts."
- Verification Source #4: Refers to "tax cuts passed during the first Trump administration."
- Verification Source #5: Refers to "Trump tax cuts."
Supporting Evidence/Contradictions:
- Verification Source #3 and #4 support the claim that the tax cuts will add approximately $2.4 trillion to the deficit, while Verification Source #2 claims extending the tax cuts would add $4.6 trillion. The CBS article's claim of "more than $2 trillion" is therefore supported, although the exact figure is debated.
- All sources confirm that the tax cuts are associated with President Trump.
- Verification Source #5 presents a counter-argument, suggesting the CBO report only tells half the story and that the tax cuts could boost the economy. This perspective is not presented in the CBS article, indicating a potential bias.