White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki claimed during Monday’s press briefing that it would be “unfair and absurd” for companies to raise costs on consumers in response to the Biden administration raising the corporate tax rate.
Psaki made the remarks during the following interaction with a reporter. The reporter asked: “I want to ask you about what Republicans are pointing to in the analysis from the Joint Committee on Taxation. They say, according to — if I’ve read the chart correctly, more than 16 percent of taxpayers would see their taxes increase under the bill that’s approved by the House Ways and Means Committee. Will the President sign that bill if — as if — it is coming out of that committee? Or will he insist on the changes so that he will maintain his commitment that taxes won’t go up on people making $400,000 a year?”
Psaki replied: “I have not looked at the document or the report that you have put out. Obviously, the President or that you have referenced, I should say that the Republicans put out. Obviously, the President’s commitment remains not raising taxes for anyone making less than $400,000 a year.”
Psaki continued: “There are some — and I’m not sure if this is the case in this report — who argue that, in the past, companies have passed on these costs to consumers. I’m not sure if that’s the argument being made in this report. We feel that that’s unfair and absurd, and the American people would not stand for that.”
Forbes added that it was “important to remember that corporate taxes must be paid by people,” the report said. “Any corporate tax increase will be paid by either shareholders/owners, employees in the form of lower wages, or customers in the form of higher prices.”
