White House budget director Mick Mulvaney pledged Wednesday night that President Donald Trump would reject a tax proposal that raised taxes for the middle class.
“If our numbers here at the White House actually show the same thing, if they show that taxes are going up on the middle class, on the House plan, on the Senate plan, on some combination of the two, we won’t sign it,” Mulvaney said in an interview on CNN’s “Erin Burnett OutFront.”
Mulvaney was responding to the most recent analysis from the Tax Policy Center saying the GOP legislation would cause at least a quarter of taxpayers to see an increase in their tax payments over the next 10 years.
Mulvaney said he disagreed with the analysis, but reiterated Trump is seeking a plan that establishes lower taxes for the middle class, makes it easier to file taxes and lowers the corporate tax rate.
Trump on Tuesday claimed he would personally have a higher tax bill under GOP reforms. However, the President has refused to release his tax returns, making such a claim unverifiable.
Asked about how much the President would pay, Mulvaney said he declined to “relitigate” the President’s taxes.
“That’s a political issue that got washed out as far as I’m concerned in the election,” Mulvaney said.
Mulvaney said he did not know how Trump had structured his income, but speculated that Trump “is going to pay a fairly substantial price” if Republicans get rid of state and local tax deductions, depending on how other deductions shake out, because of where his properties are located.
Regardless, he said, the topic did not concern him.
“Honestly, I don’t think it’s any of my business,” Mulvaney said.