Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who recently announced his bid for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, expressed his openness to a congressional measure that would abolish the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
DeSantis made the remarks during an interview with radio host Dana Loesch on The Dana Show.
DeSantis: “Yes,” I would defund the IRS. pic.twitter.com/jL3IWTmAAa
— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) May 27, 2023
“Are you for a distant tax, a flat tax, where are you on that?” Loesch asked DeSantis.
“So the answer is yes. I think the IRS is a corrupt organization and I don’t think it’s a friend to the average citizen or the average taxpayer,” DeSantis responded. “We need something totally different.”
“I’ve supported all the single rate proposals, I think it would be a huge improvement on the current system and I’d welcome taking that tax system, throwing it out the window and doing something that’s more favorable to the average person .”
DeSantis, known for his criticism of the IRS for its unfair practices and targeting of the middle class, previously expressed opposition to the Biden administration’s plan to expand the agency by 87,000 new agents, which he described as a “middle finger to the American public”. ” in August last year. He argued that such an expansion would likely result in greater scrutiny of small business owners and working people.
“Of all the things that have come out of Washington that have been outrageous, this has got to be pretty near the top,” DeSantis said at the time. “I think it was basically just the middle finger to the American public, that this is what they think of you.”
“They’re going to go after independent contractors, they’re going to go after small business owners, they’re going to go after someone who might be driving an Uber or a manual or all of those things,” DeSantis added at the time. “Why would they do that? Because you won’t be able to fight the audit, so they’re going to crush a lot of people doing that.”
The governor has advocated a fair or flat tax system as an alternative to the current tax structure. During a 2013 Fox News appearance, DeSantis expressed his belief that the IRS had outlived its usefulness and that transitioning to a flat or flat tax would reduce the power of government.
DeSantis’ critics, including a super PAC backing former President Donald Trump’s potential 2024 campaign, have targeted him for his past support for a national sales tax. However, it is important to note that the proposed law, known as the Fair Tax Act or HR25, would have eliminated all other federal taxes, including income tax, if enacted. DeSantis co-sponsored this bill several times between 2013 and 2017.
Bryan Griffin, the press secretary for DeSantis’ political team, clarified that the governor supported the concept of a fair tax, which aimed to reduce the overall tax burden on individuals and abolish the IRS , while criticizing the politicization of the tax agency during the Obama administration.
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