Here we go again with another Republican telling us we need to make the income disparity in the United States worse. Right now I'm thinking the least amount of damage that so-called "super committee" could do right now is just to remain deadlocked.
And who wants to bet the people Kay Bailey Hutchison is talking here who currently aren't paying any taxes are the poor and the elderly? And naturally the one reason she really wants to see that committee come to an agreement is because heaven forbid we can't reduce our military spending.
Transcript via CNN.
CROWLEY: OK. Let me turn you to somewhat politics as usual up on Capitol Hill, where we have 33 senators who have written the super committee and said, listen, rewrite the tax code with no net tax increase. Does that letter not doom the super committee to failure given what the Democrats want and this is supposed to be a compromise?
HUTCHISON: No, I don't think it dooms it to failure. I think if we are going to realistically get our budget house in order, we've got to cut spending, we have to have a fairer tax code, one in which it is lower and promotes growth in business, but does catch people who aren't paying taxes right now who should be paying taxes.
You get revenue increase by increasing the growth in our business sector, our private sector. You increase growth in the private sector and you'll get new revenue, because people will be working and paying taxes rather than having to be on unemployment.
CROWLEY: Which has been the Republican position for some time now, but the super committee is supposed to come up with a compromise. And if 33 senators, and we know there's probably more than that, are going to say, listen, you know, fix the tax code, don't raise taxes, and keep it net revenue neutral, it just seems to me that there is not -- to a lot of people it seems that there is not a compromise there. So what is the point of the super committee?
HUTCHISON: Well, I think you're saying revenue neutral means no added revenue. I don't think anyone is saying that. Republicans are saying we want new revenue to come from growth in the economy. And growth in the economy requires that we don't increase taxes, that in some cases, like corporate side and even individual small businesses, we want to lower taxes.
We want people to be hired. We want jobs to be created by people having more of the money that they're earning to plow back into the business. That means that we're going to have a fairer tax code which will bring in revenue through growth in the economy.
CROWLEY: Senator, if the super committee does not come to any kind of agreement, there will be across-the-board cuts split evenly between domestic spending, with some programs protected, and defense spending. Are you willing to live with that? Is that all right with you?
HUTCHISON: I don't like it. I do not like it, 1.2 trillion...
CROWLEY: Would you try to change it?
HUTCHISON: That would be $600 billion in cuts in our military when we are in a conflict and we've got our troops in harm's way. I don't like that at all. And the reason that we need for the super committee to succeed is to keep that from happening.
CROWLEY: Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, thank you so much for joining us this morning. I appreciate it.
HUTCHISON: Thank you, Candy.
