Mitt Romney is trying to rebut Democratic attacks on his tax proposal by vowing that he would not raise taxes on the middle class – but again declined to go into specifics.
Pressed by NBC's David Gregory in an interview that aired Sunday on “Meet the Press,” the Republican presidential nominee said he would be able to lower individual tax rates and remain revenue neutral, since he would limit tax deductions for high-income earners that would not change the amount of taxes that the wealthy would actually end up paying. Under his plan, the middle class would not be affected, he insisted, and that would also spur economic growth.
“Governor, where are the specifics of how you get to this math?” Gregory asked. “Isn't that an issue?”
“Well, the specifics are these which is those principles I described are the heart of my policy,” Romney replied. “And I've indicated as well that contrary to what the Democrats are saying I'm not going to increase the tax burden on middle income families. It would absolutely be wrong to do that.”
Asked to identify a tax loophole that he would close, Romney replied: “Well, I can tell you that people at the high end, high-income taxpayers, are going to have fewer deductions and exemptions. Those numbers are going to come down. Otherwise, they'd get a tax break. And I want to make sure people understand, despite what the Democrats said at their convention, I am not reducing taxes on high income taxpayers.”
Romney also said he would balance the budget by the end of a second term.
“Doing it in the first term would cause, I believe, a dramatic impact on the economy,” Romney said. “Too dramatic. And therefore the steps I've put in place and we've put together a plan that lays out how we get to a balanced budget within eight to 10 years.”
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