Upton to play direct role in GOP tax plan’s fate

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ST. JOSEPH, Mich. -- Congressman Fred Upton is one of a handful of lawmakers who will work on a final version of the Republican tax plan. He talked about its impact on the deficit in an interview on Friday.

Upton was recently named to the committee of senators and representatives who are tasked with combining the two tax bills passed by Republicans in the U.S. House and Senate.

In an interview on Friday at his district office in St. Joe, Upton explained why he thinks the tax plan – which is projected to add at least $1 trillion to the nation’s deficit, if passed – will be worth it.

“We know that it’ll impact the deficit,” Upton said. “But a couple of things: For many months I’ve been saying, ‘You know what? We need growth.’ We’ve had poor economic growth the last number of years, often way under even a 2 percent GDP.”

He continued: “This bill, I think, particularly if we make it permanent, will make sure that we might be able to double the growth rate from where we are today. Double the growth rate, you got more people working, you got more people paying taxes, and in fact, long-term, you can make an impact on the deficit. But in the short-term, yeah it’s going to raise the deficit; we know that. But to me, moving the economy forward is the most important thing we can do, particularly as it relates to jobs.”

Upton said the committee he’s now part of is scheduled to meet for the first time next week, between December 11 and 15.

He said the goal is to get a final version of the tax bill through the House, Senate, and onto President Trump’s desk by Christmas.

Upton also said he thinks some Democrats could end up supporting the revised bill.

Click here to hear the six Democrats, who are challenging Upton in 2018, explain how they feel about the GOP tax plan.

And click here to hear an Andrews University business professor talk about the Republican tax bill.

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