Douglas Johnston: Closing loophole makes sense

Regarding the May 14 Catherine Rampell column “A no-brainer for the GOP establishment”: Closing the carried interest loophole points the way for a one-two winning punch for America: use the $20 billion savings as a down payment on the “getting ahead” tax cut – a cut on the first dollars everyone earns, not the last millions of a few.

It’s simple: It reduces the lowest tax bracket rate. It’s necessary. Every dime of tax on the first dollars we earn delays the time we stop scraping by and start getting ahead. It’s targeted.

Across the board cuts, flat taxes and increases in the standard deduction scatter the tax cut effect and dilute its effect. It’s fair. Everyone keeps the same amount of the first dollars they earn, even millionaires. It works. A cut that counts. A real chance to save for home, health, education and retirement. Not a handout. It’s the second rung, along with EITC, of the ladder to move up or find a way out. Not a giveaway.

No more heaping another, lopsided tax break on the already-wealthy. Good for employees and employers. A pay increase at no cost to employers. It’s payback to workers, volunteers, neighbors and families, together, builders of the United States, where fortunes of the rich are made and preserved.

This story was originally published May 22, 2016 at 6:00 PM with the headline "Douglas Johnston: Closing loophole makes sense."