Yesterday, House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) joined Brian Kilmeade on Fox News Radio’s “The Brian Kilmeade Show” to discuss the economy, tax reform, and the need to get Americans off of the sidelines and back into the workforce.
On jobs coming back home and Main Street businesses growing:
“Bottom line is: It’s a good thing. First, now because of our new tax code, companies are bringing their earnings back from overseas and investing them here in America. Secondly, you know, most of them are buying new equipment, expanding facilities, increasing wages and paychecks… all great things. But when they look at the environment and say ‘look, we’re not sure we see an investment to do right now’ it goes back to the stockholders – and, who are those? The American people. Mostly, in their retirement plans.”
Listen to Chairman Brady on the GOP’s approach to solving economic problems.
“And last week, Brian, you probably noticed on Monday, the National Federation of Independent Business… did a survey and what they announced was earnings are at the highest level for our Main Street local mom-and-pops in 45 years. Six out of 10 of them are hiring workers right now, and now they’re reversing the Obama economics where more businesses went out of business than started. Well, already, in just the 4th month of tax reform we’re reversing that. More small businesses [are being] … created rather than leaving.”
“Look, there’s going to be a stark choice… Do you want to go back to the bad ol’ days where Washington leeches more of what you earn so they can spend more… or we chose you. As Republicans we believe you know best how to spend your money and get this economy going. So, it’s going to be a very stark contrast.”
On tax reform 2.0:
“We’re doing the same kind of ground work we did for the original tax reform… listening to our Members of Congress, they’re listening back home. Bottom line is we want to change the culture up here. We want to never be complacent and we know China, Germany, Europe, Mexico, Canada – look, they’re not taking what we did standing still.”
“We’re looking at making the family cuts permanent and the small business tax cuts permanent as well. We think certainty matters. We’re also looking at how we become more competitive and innovative.”
“Every day we should be asking how do we make our tax code more family-friendly, how do we help people stretch their dollars back home… One of them is we can do more to help families save earlier in life and more. We also think we can do more to help employers help students with their student loans when they come out because right now they’re saddled with just huge numbers and it frightens every family. We want you to have the first claim over your work. Not Washington.”
On the Committee’s work to get Americans off of the sidelines and into the workforce:
“States have really moved away from helping people get to work and they’re filling their budget holes with this. This is all going to be about jobs. So, we’re re-vamping the whole program insisting that no one be left on the sidelines, that we help men and women on welfare move back into the workforce and in the future, we’re not going to measure this by ‘did you get a temporary job’.”
“We have one measurement: Did we help someone get a job and keep a job going forward. Because we have a new tax code, the economy is roaring back – every business I talk to is looking for workers. Yet, we have millions on the sidelines in welfare that are trapped there. So, we’re determined frankly to help them get back on their feet.”
“There is such an importance for a child to see their parent go to work each day and there is something bigger than any program in watching that happen. Our government right now… rewards people for not going to work or more importantly punishes them if they do.”
“We’re determined to get the incentives right. To stop trapping people, in fact, convincing them and incentivizing states to make sure everybody is moving towards a job.”
