Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan says the size of the surplus allows the government to trim taxes and pay down a portion of the national debt. When measured against the size of the economy, the Bush tax cut proposal is actually smaller than either the Reagan or Kennedy tax cuts. In an editorial, the Chicago Sun Times says the Bush tax cut is a good deal for average Americans. The paper criticizes Daschle for saying the rich would save enough in taxes to buy a luxury car. The American Farm Bureau Federation says lower tax rates enable farmers to save more to help them through times of low prices and natural disasters.
Farmers also can use the tax savings to invest in their operations or pay down existing debt.
Lower taxes make U.S. farmers more competitive in the world marketplace. Farmers in some countries have lower taxes and lower regulatory costs and receive more support from their governments. Alan Greenspan, who warned of irrational exuberance in the stock market, sees nothing of that kind in a tax cut. Greenspan says it is much better to reduce the budget surplus by refunding money to taxpayers than increasing federal spending. Last year spending was up 8 percent.