Giuliani Plans to Lower Taxes and Increase Jobs

If elected president, Republican candidate Rudy Giuliani promises to improve the economy by reducing taxes, thus stimulating jobs and global competition. His message is to keep it simple.

In a recent speech in New Hampshire, Giuliani expressed confidence in his ability to handle country's fiscal future.

"If you understand how to lower taxes, you understand how to grow an economy," Giuliani said, according to the New Hampshire Union Leader. "I've done it more effectively than anyone else running for President."

During his eight-year tenure as mayor of New York, Giuliani eliminated or reduced more than 20 city taxes and transformed a $2.3 billion deficit into a multi-billion dollar surplus. His policies included eradicating the sales taxes on clothing priced at less than $110; extending property-tax relief for owners of co-ops and condos; and cutting the hotel occupancy tax by 30 percent.

If voted into the Oval Office, Giuliani says he plans to continue this philosophy by simplifying taxes. He has promised to extend President George W. Bush's 2001 and 2003 tax cuts and to eliminate or reduce the death tax. After gaining the endorsement of former presidential candidate Steve Forbes in March, Giuliani has also considered joining Forbes in his support of a flat tax -- in which all levels of income are taxed equally -- though he denounced the concept while mayor of New York.

In a recent Fox News report, Giuliani said his tax policies are what set him most apart from his Democrat opponents.

"I don't think anything separates us more right now between Republicans and Democrats than how we look at taxes," Giuliani said in February. "What we understand as Republicans is that, sure, the government is an important player in this, but we are essentially a private economy. What Democrats really believe ... is that it is essentially a government economy. "

Raising taxes or creating new taxes to solve current problems will only exacerbate those issues, he argued. Fewer taxes would mean more money for individuals, for example, to afford health insurance, Giuliani said on Kudlow and Company.

Giuliani backers, such as Forbes, say they like his fiscal policies because he aims high.

"The thing I like about Rudy Giuliani is that in New York City he demonstrated he was willing to try big things," Forbes told the New York Times."In a Giuliani presidency," he predicted, "we'll have an assault" on the federal tax code.

Resources

Bartiromo, Maria. "Rudy Giuliani on Iraq, Taxes, Mistakes." Businessweek. 30 April 2007. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_18/b4032099.htm

Hoang, Son. "Giuliani: Lower Taxes, Cut Spending." New Hampshire Union Leader. 25 April 2007. http://unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Giuliani%3a+Lower+taxes%2c+cut+spending&articleId=426d78b6-b43d-40eb-a1c6-cef3afc21939

"Interview with Rudy Giuliani". Real Clear Politics: Kudlow and Company. 26 March 2007.
http://www1.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2007/03/interview_with_rudy_giuliani_1.html

Perez-Pena, Richard. "As Forbes Endorses Giuliani, Giuliani Endorses a Flat Tax." The New York Times. 29 March 2007.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/29/us/politics/29rudy.html?ex=1177819200&en=e168c248435c6c2f&ei=5070

"Rudy Giuliani on Tax Reform." On the Issues: Every Political Leader, Every Issue. http://www.ontheissues.org/2008/Rudy_Giuliani_Tax_Reform.htm