Weekly
Address: Closing Corporate Tax Loopholes
July 26, 2014
Hi, everybody. Our businesses have now added nearly 10
million new jobs over the past 52 months.
The unemployment rate is at its lowest point since September 2008 – the
fastest one-year drop in nearly 30 years.
401(k)s are growing, fewer homes are underwater, and for the first time
in more than a decade, business leaders around the world have declared that the
world’s number one place to invest isn’t China; it’s the United States of
America – and our lead is growing.
None of this is an accident. It’s thanks to the resilience and resolve of
the American people that our country has recovered faster and come farther than
almost any other advanced nation on Earth.
But there’s another trend that
threatens to undermine the progress you’ve helped make. Even as corporate profits are as high as
ever, a small but growing group of big corporations are fleeing the country to
get out of paying taxes. They’re keeping
most of their business inside the United States, but they’re basically
renouncing their citizenship and declaring that they’re based somewhere else,
just to avoid paying their fair share.
I want to be clear: this is only
a few big corporations so far. The vast
majority of American businesses pay their taxes right here in the United
States. But when some companies
cherrypick their taxes, it damages the country’s finances. It adds to the deficit. It makes it harder to invest in the things
that will keep America strong, and it sticks you with the tab for what they
stash offshore. Right now, a loophole in
our tax laws makes this totally legal – and I think that’s totally wrong. You don’t get to pick which rules you play
by, or which tax rate you pay, and neither should these companies.
The best way to level the playing
field is through tax reform that lowers the corporate tax rate, closes wasteful
loopholes, and simplifies the tax code for everybody. But stopping companies from renouncing their
citizenship just to get out of paying their fair share of taxes is something
that cannot wait. That’s why, in my
budget earlier this year, I proposed closing this unpatriotic tax loophole for
good. Democrats in Congress have
advanced proposals that would do the same thing. A couple Republicans have indicated they want
to address this too, and I hope more join us.
Rather than double-down on the
top-down economics that let a fortunate few play by their own rules, let’s
embrace an economic patriotism that says we rise or fall together, as one
nation, and as one people. Let’s reward
the hard work of ordinary Americans who play by the rules. Together, we can build up our middle class,
hand down something better to our kids, and restore the American Dream for all
who work for it and study for it and strive for it.
Thanks, and have a great weekend. |
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