President Trump: The Rich Aren't Getting a Break With Tax Reform

Katie Pavlich | September 13, 2017 4:15 PM

Speaking from the White House Wednesday afternoon before a meeting with a number of bipartisan lawmakers, President Trump said the rich won't be getting a break as the administration moves forward on tax reform. He also indicated wealthy Americans, which wasn't clearly defined in terms of income, may end up paying more in taxes.

“The rich will not be gaining at all with this plan. We are looking for the middle class and we are looking for jobs, jobs being the economy. So we’re looking at middle class and we’re looking at jobs,” he said. “I think the wealthy will be pretty much where they are, pretty much where they are. If they have to go higher, they’ll go higher."

The President also said he expects a corporate tax rate of 15 percent.

“We want a 15 percent rate because that would bring us low, not by any means the lowest. But it would bring us to a level where China and other countries are. And we will be able to compete with anybody,” Trump said.

During a meeting on Capitol Hill today, House Ways and Means Committee Kevin Brady said a tax reform package will be delivered for debate and modification the week of September 25. Brady has argued for tax cuts across the board.

#TaxReform...
? We’re going bold.
? We’re going permanent.
? We’re going now.
Click here to learn more: https://t.co/EAtOCKSJHk pic.twitter.com/IemdcLwWYh
— RepKevinBrady (@RepKevinBrady) September 13, 2017

President Trump met with a small group of bipartisan Senators at the White House last night, hosting them for dinner.

"President Donald J. Trump met with Republican and Democrat Senators to discuss advancing the Administration’s legislative priorities, in particular tax cuts for the middle class. The President asked the bipartisan group of Senators to help deliver tax cuts for American families, which is essential to economic growth and prosperity," a readout of the meeting from the White House states. "Through bipartisan outreach efforts like this, President Trump is demonstrating his commitment to fulfilling his promises, and that includes producing tangible results on important issues like tax reform. The meeting was highly productive, and will spur constructive discussion moving forward.”