CONDITIONS MORE. MATT AND SAVANNAH?
>> PETER ALEXANDER AT THE WHITE HOUSE, THANK YOU.
TREASURY SECRETARY STEVEN MNUCHIN, THANK YOU FOR BEING
WITH US. >> GREAT TO BE HERE WITH YOU.
>> LET'S START WITH THE CLIP WE JUST PLAYED.
CANDIDATE TRUMP WAS ON THIS SHOW TELLING OUR VIEWERS A YEAR AGO
THAT HE BELIEVED IN RAISING TAXES ON THE WEALTHY, INCLUDING
HIMSELF. WOULD YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE
REFORM PLAN YOU HAVE LAID OUT DOES THE EXACT OPPOSITE, IN
FACT, IT IS A DRAMATIC CUT IN TAXES FOR THE WEALTHY?
>> NO, THIS ISN'T ABOUT A DRAWED MAKE CUT IN TAXES FOR THE
WEALTHY. THIS IS ABOUT LOWERING TAX RATES
IN RETURN FOR GETTING RID OF MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF DEDUCTIONS
AND SPECIAL INTERESTS. >> BUT IT DOES CUT TAXES FOR THE
WEALTHY, RIGHT? >> AGAIN, WHEN WE LAY OUT THE
EXACT DETAILS OF THE PLAN, WHAT YOU'LL SEE IS, THIS IS ABOUT
REDUCING TAXES AND TAX SIMPLIFICATION.
THIS IS ABOUT A MIDDLE-INCOME TAX CUT.
THIS IS ABOUT HAVING SWEEPING TAX CUTS, THE LARGEST TAX CUTS
IN HISTORY, THE LARGEST TAX REFORM PROGRAM IN HISTORY, TO
CREATE AMERICAN JOBS. THIS IS ALL ABOUT JOBS, JOBS,
JOBS. >> LET ME JUST ASK YOU ONE
THING, CAN YOU GIVE ME AN EXAMPLE OF A WEALTHY INDIVIDUAL
OR CORPORATIONS WHOSE TAXES WILL GO UP UNDER WHAT YOU HAVE
PROPOSED? >> AGAIN, WHAT WE WANTED TO DO
WAS LAY OUT THE PRESIDENT'S PRINCIPLES.
AND HIS PRINCIPLES ARE ALL PART OF HIS ECONOMIC PLAN.
HE IS DETERMINED TO CREATE ECONOMIC GROWTH, OF 3% OR
HIGHER, AND IN REGARDS TO THIS, AGAIN, THIS IS ABOUT LOWERING
BUSINESS TAXES TO MAKE BUSINESSES COMPETITIVE.
WE HAVE A VERY UNCOMPETITIVE BUSINESS TAX SYSTEM.
AND BY DOING THIS, WE'LL CREATE LOTS AND LOTS OF JOBS.
>> I'M GLAD YOU TALKED ABOUT GROWTH BECAUSE THE COMMITTEE FOR
A RESPONSIBLE BUDGET, WHICH IS A NONPARTISAN ORGANIZATION, SAYS
THE NUMBERS ARE A PROBLEM HERE, MR. SECRETARY.
THEY SAY IT'S GOING TO RESULT IN BETWEEN $3 AND $7 TRILLION FEWER
DOLLARS COMING INTO THE GOVERNMENT.
AND TO COMPENSATE THAT WITH GROWTH, THE GROWTH RATE WOULD
HAVE TO BE 4.5%. YOU JUST SAID YOU'RE HOPING FOR
A GROWTH RATE OF ABOUT 3%. THAT'S GOING TO RESULT IN A
BLOSSOMING OF THE DEFICIT, ISN'T IT?
>> MATT, FIRST OF ALL, THE OTHER PEOPLE, EXTERNAL GROUPS, WHO
NORMALLY MODEL THE PLANS, HAVEN'T MODELED THE PLAN BECAUSE
THEY SAID THEY DON'T HAVE THE DETAILS.
SO THE NUMBERS THAT YOU'RE CITING, WE DON'T AGREE WITH
THOSE NUMBERS. AND WE DON'T THINK THEY ARE
ACCURATE. AND WHEN WE COME OUT WITH THE
DETAILS OF THE PLAN, WE'LL SHOW, THIS IS GOING TO BE PAID FOR BY
A COMBINATION OF ECONOMIC GROWTH, WHICH WILL BE AROUND 3%,
OR SLIGHTLY HIGHER, AND A COMBINATION OF BY REDUCING
MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF DEDUCTIONS AND SPECIAL INTERESTS.
>> SO WITHOUT GETTING OVERLY DRAMATIC THEN, MR. SECRETARY,
WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO RAISE YOUR RIGHT HAND AND LOOK AT THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE AND SAY, I, STEVEN MNUCHIN, PROMISE YOU THAT
THIS WILL BE REVENUE-NEUTRAL AND DEFICIT-NEUTRAL?
>> AGAIN, OUR OBJECTIVE, MATT, IS TO PAY FOR THIS WITH ECONOMIC
GROWTH. SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE WORKING WITH
THE HOUSE AND THE SENATE. THIS IS NOW ABOUT TAKING THE
PRESIDENT'S PRINCIPLES AND TURNING THEM INTO A BILL THAT WE
CAN GET PASSED AND THE PRESIDENT CAN SIGN THIS YEAR SO WE CAN
CREATE ECONOMIC GROWTH. AND WE'RE GOING TO WORK CLOSELY
WITH CONGRESS TO GET THIS DONE. SO, MATT, YES, OUR PRINCIPLES
ARE WE WANT TO PAY WITH THIS WITH ECONOMIC GROWTH AND WITH
REDUCING LOTS AND LOTS OF SPECIAL INTEREST DEDUCTIONS.
>> BUT YOU KNOW THIS, THIS IDEA THAT YOU CAN PAY FOR IT WITH
ECONOMIC GROWTH IS KIND OF A WASHINGTON FAIRY TALE.
YOU HEAR ABOUT IT ALL THE TIME, TAX CUTS DEFINITELY STIMULATE
GROWTH. THE QUESTION IS WHETHER IT'S
ENOUGH. THERE'S A GUY NAMED STEVE BELL,
A REPUBLICAN STAFF MEMBER IN THE '80s WHEN REAGAN HAD HIS TAX
CUT, AND HE SAID THIS IS FOOL'S GOLD THAT YOU'LL CUT TAXES.
EVERYBODY WORKS HARDER, MORE MONEY COMES IN AND YOU ERASE THE
FISCAL IMPACT. HE SAYS IT NEVER HAPPENS.
>> WE OBVIOUSLY DON'T AGREE WITH THAT AND THERE ARE PLENTY OF
ECONOMISTS WHO HAVE LINED UP WITH WHAT WE'RE SAYING.
LET ME JUST TELL YOU, THERE ARE MANY STUDY THAT IS SHOW 70% OR
MORE OF THE TAX BURDEN OF CORPORATIONS IS BORN BY THE
AMERICAN WORKERS. SO THIS IS ABOUT LOWERING THE
BUSINESS TAXES FOR BOTH BIG CORPORATIONS AND SMALL AND
MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESSES, PUTTING THAT MONEY BACK IN THE POCKETS
OF AMERICAN WORKERS AND, BY THE WAY, BY CREATING A TERRITORIAL
SYSTEM, WE WILL BRING BACK TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS THAT HAVE
BEEN PARKED OFFSHORE BECAUSE OF COMPLICATED TAX SYSTEMS, THAT
THESE COMPANIES WILL INVEST IN AMERICAN PLANTS, AMERICAN
EQUIPMENT, TO CREATE AMERICAN JOBS.
>> REAL, REAL QUICKLY, MR. SECRETARY, YOU HAVE SAID THE
PRESIDENT HAS ALREADY REVEALED A LOT OF FINANCIAL INFORMATION,
MORE THAN ANYONE. WE COULD ARGUE ABOUT THAT FOR AN
ENTIRE OTHER SEGMENT, BUT DOESN'T IT MAKE YOUR JOB HARDER
TO GO OUT AND SELL A TAX PLAN THAT'S GOING TO IMPACT EVERY
AMERICAN'S TAX RETURNS WHEN THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
HAS NOT BEEN TRANSPARENT WITH HIS OWN TAX RETURNS?
>> NOT AT ALL, MATT. I THINK THE AMERICAN PUBLIC IS
COMFORTABLE WITH THE INFORMATION THE PRESIDENT HAS RELEASED.
THIS IS NOT ABOUT THE IMPACT OF ONE TAXPAYERS, THIS IS THE
IMPACT ON AMERICAN TAXPAYERS AND AMERICAN BUSINESS.
AND WE ARE FOCUSED ON ECONOMIC GROWTH AND JOBS, JOBS, JOBS.
FOR TOO LONG THIS ECONOMY HAS BEEN HELD BACK BY REGULATORY
ISSUES, BY TAX BURDEN, AND WE ARE UNLEASHING THAT.
>> REAL QUICKLY -- SORRY, JUST ON THE TAX RETURNS, YOU DID SAY
YESTERDAY AT YOUR BRIEFING THE PRESIDENT HAS NO INTENTION TO
RELEASE HIS TAX RETURNS. HE USED TO SAY HE WOULD WHEN THE
AUDITS WERE COMPLETE. IS IT YOUR UNDERSTANDING HE WILL
NEVER RELEASE HIS TAX RETURNS? >> WELL, I'M GOING TO LET THE
PRESIDENT DECIDE WHAT HE'S GOING TO DO IN THE FUTURE.
THAT'S OBVIOUSLY UP TO HIM. AND AGAIN, WHAT THE PRESIDENT IS
FOCUSED AND I'M FOCUSED ON IS, CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE
AMERICAN PUBLIC. AND WE COULDN'T BE MORE EXCITED
ABOUT THAT. AND THIS PLAN IS THE BEGINNING
OF CREATING ECONOMIC GROWTH. >>