BLOG

Wheel of Fortune: Where Will Trump's Top Tax Rate Land?

The Trump administration looks to be on the verge of lowering both corporate and individual tax rates. Several percentages have been thrown around, but what will the final number be --- and will it have the intended "trickle down" effect to boost the economy?

Enjoy the complimentary clip or read the transcript for details.

GLENN: All right. Today, Donald Trump is coming out with his tax plan. And 15 percent for corporate taxes. We don't know what the --

PAT: That's good.

GLENN: Yeah, we don't know what the top tax rate is going to be.

STU: Yeah, there's going to be some individual cut as well.

GLENN: Yes. Some individual cut.

PAT: During the campaign, it was -- the top rate was 25, right? Has he backed off that?

GLENN: I'm sure he did.

STU: I think so.

PAT: Probably.

STU: No, I don't think he's backed off of it yet.

GLENN: I don't think they've announced it.

STU: They have not announced it. People are saying that they think it would be better, from a cut perspective than the Paul Ryan plan. The Ryan plan had a 35 percent -- I think it was -- maybe it was 33 percent top rate. So we -- the expectation is it will be less than that. I think Trump during the campaign had a top rate of 25.

GLENN: Is he going to be able to get it passed?

PAT: If he went to 28, that would be great. Because isn't that where it was during Reagan? 28 percent.

GLENN: Reagan. Yeah, 28 percent at the top, and 15 percent for corporate would be a boon to the economy.

PAT: Yeah.

GLENN: Although, I'm not sure that anybody is going to spend that money. I mean, if -- if -- honestly, if they cut my taxes now as a corporation, I would reinvest some of it, but some of it, I would pull off for a rainy day. In fact, I think today, a lot of it I would pull off for a rainy day.

STU: But that has other economic benefits as well, when rainy days come, business doesn't shut down. That's a good thing.

GLENN: Correct. Correct. But it doesn't spur the economy, doesn't create jobs. It doesn't, quote, trickle down.

STU: You know, I would say it does. Maybe not all of it. But, I mean --

GLENN: Some of it would. Some of it would.

STU: Some of it would. It would increase.

GLENN: Yeah. Now, if they decided -- if he came out -- and, again, this is just basic Economics 101. If he would come out and say, "This tax cut to 28 and 15, it goes hand in hand with reduced spending." And I'm not talking about, you know, reducing it back to the spending levels of 2006. I'm talking about a 10 percent -- 10 percent across-the-board, everywhere cut.

Then I would look at that tax cut and, and I would say, "I have confidence that we're going in the right direction." And we have a chance to really spur things on. Because the government is heading in the right direction. The government is recognizing that they're part of the problem here.

Then that would spur on, I think, a massive boom. A massive boom.

STU: I'm looking right now at the tax reform that will Making America Great Again plan from the campaign. $50,000 or less, if you earn as a married couple --

GLENN: This is what he promised during the campaign.

STU: Yeah. So this is I think the fair standard to judge his proposal on. Right? Is it better or worse than this? This is what I would expect from him.

Obviously, it's what he put up in the campaign. And we'll hear it today. But income tax rate, if you're up to $50,000, married filer, 0 percent. Zero.

PAT: Pretty much everybody was doing that.

STU: But that's a good -- to lock that in was good.

PAT: Yeah.

STU: It was done a lot with write-offs and different deductions before. So now from 50,000 to 100,000, all married numbers here, that's 10 percent. If you make $100,000, your overall tax rate is going to be 5 percent.

GLENN: And I will tell you --

STU: Kind of nice.

PAT: Wow.

GLENN: That's a good -- that's a good number to keep it at.

PAT: Uh-huh.

GLENN: That's what I pay God.

STU: Really, should you go more than that --

GLENN: I know what God has done for me.

PAT: Uh-huh.

GLENN: God created, not the roads, the entire universe. And he only asks for 10 percent. Help me out here.

STU: He's also responsible for the crumbling roads and bridges we have today.

GLENN: Right. Right. And the water we continually drink.

STU: Your next 200 grand, you would get taxed at 20 percent. So if you're making $300,000, you're going to pay a total of $45,000 in taxes. So that's, what, 15 percent?

GLENN: Because $300,000 is only 15 percent?

STU: Yeah. And then over $300,000, you'll go to the top rate.

GLENN: This is more progressive than any Republican that I've seen.

STU: More progressive?

GLENN: Yeah. 15 percent is your top tax rate at 300,000?

STU: Well, that's -- that would be your effective tax rate, right? So you're paying 20 percent --

GLENN: Okay. Okay.

STU: So if you make $300,000, you will have to give the government $45,000.

GLENN: Okay.

STU: Okay? Then above $300,000, you would pay at 25 percent, which is the top rate.

PAT: That's not bad at all.

GLENN: That's not bad. That's not bad.

STU: Now, there are other things in here. The big problem for most conservatives is this border adjustment tax thing, which is sort of basically a tariff to try to pay for these other cuts. However, the corporate rate drops as well, as we talked about.

GLENN: What is the border adjustment?

STU: Central. I would just say it's a tariff.

PAT: On Mexico?

STU: On everybody.

PAT: On everybody.

STU: It's a border adjustment tax. We should get an expert on to talk about it.

PAT: On all imports?

STU: It basically -- if -- if we export stuff, it's not taxed. If we import stuff, it is. So it pays a different rate.

GLENN: Okay. So wait. Wait. But that's the corporations?

STU: Yeah, that's the big sticking point right now, which a lot of conservatives don't like.

GLENN: Okay.

STU: However, there is enough in here to like. As we pointed out during the campaign, Trump did not have my favorite tax plan of all the candidates. However, his tax plan was considerably better than -- than what we have.

PAT: Oh, the best tax plan was Ted Cruz, who proposed a 10 percent flat tax, period.

STU: Yes.

PAT: Everybody pays 10 percent.

STU: With the exception of I think the first $40,000 you earn or something like that.

PAT: You seriously can't get any better than that. You can't get better than that.

STU: I did like that. Ron Paul had really good stuff on taxes as well. The other part about this is the capital gains tax, which drops down to -- I think it's -- what is it, 28 now? It goes down to 20 as a top rate. And 15 percent, up to $300,000.

PAT: Again, this will spark the economy.

STU: It would.

PAT: And then are they going to get rid of the estate tax? The death tax? I think they're talking about doing that too.

STU: I think you are right.

PAT: Which is immoral.

STU: If you're single, earn less than 25,000, or married jointly and earn less than 50, you will not owe any income tax. It removes 75 million households, over 50 percent from the income tax rolls.

We've talked about, there are issues with that as well, when you're trying to keep taxes low. When -- when you get to zero, almost no one will change it from zero.

Because it essentially becomes an entitlement to people. When you're making $50,000, you can't say, what, are you going to raise taxes on the poorest?

So it becomes politically impossible to raise those rates. The only person who ever has done it, at least in recent memory, outside of a war scenario is Ronald Reagan, who did raise one of the brackets a little bit. But, still, it's so impossible to actually --

GLENN: See, and I think morally -- politically, impossible. Morally, everyone should have skin in the game.

STU: Right. And that's the idea is, if you're not affected by tax rates, you don't care about lowering tax rates. So you wind up not being able to lower them in the future.

GLENN: And you just say, raise them. I want more stuff. Raise them. It doesn't affect me. Raise them.

STU: However, I would like everyone to have 0 percent. So it's a tough argument there.

GLENN: So would I. So would I. But, I mean, I really think -- you know, everyone should have -- quite honestly, it's kind of going back to property owners. That's the reason why we originally had -- you have to be an owner of property to vote.

STU: Right.

GLENN: Because you had to have skin in the game.

STU: Uh-huh.

GLENN: So I think your voting should be on taxes. If -- if you pay taxes -- I don't care if it's a penny, do you pay taxes? You can vote. You don't pay taxes, you're not voting.

(chuckling)

STU: Even if it's a penny.

GLENN: Even if it's a penny. But everyone should have to pay something. The widow's mite. Why is that story? Jesus asked of the woman, and who had the greater sacrifice? The woman with the widow's mite. Even Jesus asked, got to give something. Got to give something. You've got to have skin in the game.

STU: Waiting for the articles: Glenn Beck advocates poll tax. That's what they're going to --

GLENN: No.

STU: But, I mean, I do understand the concept there.

PAT: This would all be taken care of if we switched to a FairTax. Why don't we go to a FairTax.

STU: No. Don't you dare. Why would you do that?

GLENN: Why would you do that?

STU: We've got a million calls about the FairTax now. I will say, however, many people do pay other taxes, like it's --

PAT: Because the FairTax is the way to go.

STU: -- not just income tax. This is only dealing with income tax here. But it's a good tax.

GLENN: No, I know.

STU: Then you have the four brackets. Zero --

GLENN: See, well, hang on just a second. But people will learn the lesson of the -- what is he calling this? A border adjustment tax. Because you know who that is going to hit, if I understand it right, and I don't think I do --

PAT: It's going to hit everybody who shops at Walmart.

GLENN: Exactly right. That's what I was going to say.

I mean, that's where -- Target, Walmart. You're going for discount prices. They're bringing their food in. They're bringing everything in.

PAT: Everything is coming from China.

GLENN: From overseas because it's cheaper.

PAT: Yeah.

STU: Now, even Cruz had some version of this, if I remember correctly, baked into the plan, although it wasn't nearly as aggressive as the Trump one. It's sort of a way I think politicians like it, because essentially it seems like you're not taxing people. You're taxing those other countries. Like it feels better. It's why people like tariffs. It's why people like those things, because it feels a lot better.

But they would go to ten, 20, and 25 percent, instead of the current seven brackets. It eliminates the marriage penalty, the alternative minimum tax and would give you the lowest rate since World War II.

PAT: Oh, that would be great.

STU: Remember, of course, Reagan got it to a 28 percent flat rate at the very top, which was the lowest.

No business of any size from a Fortune 500 to a mom and pop, to a freelancer living job. The job would pay more than 15 percent of their business income in taxes. So that again is the corporate tax you've heard. He's actually reinforced that one recently, so we're pretty sure that's going to be part of the plan.

PAT: That would spark the economy like crazy.

STU: Oh, my gosh, that's --

PAT: That would be great.

STU: Even the left -- I've heard experts on the left come out and say we need to lower the corporate income tax.

PAT: It's the highest in the world. It's the highest in the world.

STU: It makes no sense the way we do it now.

I think liberals don't want to cut to 15, but even they want it cut. And then no family will pay the death tax.

PAT: What if we went back to a free market economy? I would wonder what would happen.

STU: Probably it would be really bad. People would be hurt.

PAT: Oh, yeah, we would go belly up. It'd just be over.

JEFFY: Hello. Oh, you'd like to get somebody on to talk about the FairTax? Sorry. We're busy, right now.

THE GLENN BECK PODCAST

Are Epstein's "Blackmail Videos" Being Used for Leverage RIGHT NOW?

What was Jeffrey Epstein's operation all about. If he was at the center of a massive blackmail operation to compromise those in positions of power, who is in possession of that information now? Glenn Beck and ATF Whistleblower John Dodson analyze the details of this situation and give their thoughts on what is the most likely reality surrounding Epstein.

Watch Glenn Beck's FULL Interview with ATF Whistleblower John Dodson HERE

TV

WARNING: How America Elects a Socialist President in 2028 | Glenn TV | Ep 444

The rise of Zohran Mamdani, the 33-year-old socialist who just won the Democratic primary for mayor, is not just a political earthquake shaking New York City — it’s a warning for the rest of America. Backed by Bernie Sanders, AOC, and the Democratic Socialists of America, Mamdani promises free everything, to tax the rich, and to dismantle capitalism. There’s nothing new about this tired strategy, but the media is propping him up as a new political genius. And with Democrat leaders lining up behind him, it’s clear: This radicalism isn’t fringe anymore. It’s the Democratic Party’s future. Mamdani’s rise is part of a larger movement that’s rewriting America’s values. Glenn Beck explains how New York is the prototype for the Left’s socialist makeover of America. Victor Davis Hanson, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Standford, gives a terrifying prediction on Mamdani’s mayoral race chances and warns the revolution is coming for mainstream Democrats. He also dives into MAGA’s frustration with the Trump administration's handling of the Epstein files.

RADIO

Did CLOUD SEEDING cause the Texas floods?

Did cloud seeding cause the 4th of July Texas floods? Rainmaker founder and CEO Augustus Doricko, who has been blamed for the flooding, joins Glenn Beck to make the case that it’s impossible for his July 2nd operation to have caused the disaster.

RADIO

INSIDE Trump’s soul: How a bullet changed his heart forever

“I have a new purpose,” then-candidate Donald Trump told reporter Salena Zito after surviving the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania. Salena joins Glenn Beck to reveal what Trump told her about God, his purpose in life, and why he really said, “Fight! Fight! Fight!”, as she details in her new book, “Butler: The Untold Story of the Near Assassination of Donald Trump and the Fight for America's Heartland”.

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: Salena, congratulations on your book. It is so good.

Just started reading it. Or listening to it, last night.

And I wish you would have -- I wish you would have read it. But, you know, the lady you have reading it is really good.

I just enjoy the way you tell stories.

The writing of this is the best explanation on who Trump supporters are. That I think I've ever read, from anybody.

It's really good.

And the description of your experience there at the edge of the stage with Donald Trump is pretty remarkable as well. Welcome to the program.

SALENA: Thank you, Glenn. Thank you so much for having me.

You know, I was thinking about this, as I was ready to come on. You and I have been along for this ride forever. For what?

Since 2006? 2005?

Like 20 years, right?

GLENN: Yeah. Yeah.

SALENA: And I've been chronicling the American people for probably ten more years, before that. And it's really remarkable to me, as watching how this coalition has grown. Right?

And watching how people have the -- have become more aspirational.

And that's -- and that is what the conservative populist coalition is, right?

It is the aspirations of many, but the celebration of the individual.

And chronicling them, yeah. Has been -- has been, a great honor.

GLENN: You know, I was thinking about this yesterday, when -- when Elon Musk said he was starting another party.

And somebody asked me, well, isn't he doing what the Tea Party tried to do?

No. The Tea Party was not going to start a new party.

It was to -- you know, it was to coerce and convince the Republican Party to do the right thing. And it worked in many ways. It didn't accomplish what we hoped.

But it did accomplish a lot of things.

Donald Trump is a result of the Tea Party.

I truly believe that. And a lot of the people that were -- right?

Were with Donald Trump, are the people that were with the Tea Party.


SALENA: That's absolutely right.

So that was the inception.

So American politics has always had movements, that have been just outside of a party. Or within a party.

That galvanize and broaden the coalition. Right? They don't take away. Or walk away, and become another party.

If anything, if there is a third party out there, it's almost a Republican Party.

Because it has changed in so many viable and meaningful ways. And the Tea Party didn't go away. It strengthened and broadened the Republican Party. Because these weren't just Republicans that became part of this party.

It was independents. It was Democrats.

And just unhappy with the establishment Republicans. And unhappy with Democrats.

And that -- that movement is what we -- what I see today.

What I see every day. What I saw that day, in butler, when I showed I happen at that rally.

As I do, so many rallies, you know, throughout my career. And that one was riveting and changed everything.

GLENN: You made a great case in the opening chapter. You talk about how things were going for Donald Trump.

And how this moment really did change everything for Donald Trump.

Changed the trajectory, changed the mood.

I mean, Elon Musk was not on the Trump train, until this.

SALENA: Yeah.

GLENN: Moment. What do I -- what changed? How -- how did that work?

And -- and I contend, that we would have much more profound change, had the media actually done their job and reported this the way it really was. Pragmatism

SALENA: You know, and people will find this in the book. I'm laying on the ground with an agent on top of me.

I'm 4 feet away from the president.

And there's -- there's notices coming up on my phone. Saying, he was hit by broken glass.

And to this take, that remains part of this sibling culture, in American politics.

Because reporters were -- were so anxious to -- to right what they believed happened.

As opposed to what happened.

And it's been a continual frustration of mine, as a reporter, who is on the ground, all the time.

And I'll tell you, what changed in that moment.

And I say a nuance, and I believe nuance is dead in American journalism.

But it was a nuance and it was a powerful conversation, that I had with President Trump, the next day. He called me the next morning.

But it's a powerful conversation I had with him, just two weeks ago.

When he made this decision to say, fight, fight, fight.

People have put in their heads, why they think he said it. But he told me why he said that. And he said, Salena, in that moment, I was not Donald Trump the man. I was a former president. I was quite possibly going to be president again.

And I had an obligation to the country, and to the office that I have served in, to project strength. To project resolve.

To project that we will not be defeated.

And it's sort of like a symbolic eagle, that is always -- you know, that symbol that we look at, when we think about our country.

He said, that's why I said that. I didn't want the people behind me panicking. I didn't want the people watching, panicking.

I had to show strength. And it's that nuance -- that I think people really picked up on.

And galvanized people.

GLENN: So he told me, when he was laying down on the stage.

And you can hear him. Let me get up. Let me get up.

I've got to get up.

He told me, as I was laying on the stage. I asked him, what were you thinking? What was going through your head? Now, Salena, I don't know about you.

But with me. It would be like, how do I get off the stage? My first was survival.

He said, what was going on through his mind was, you're not pathetic. This is pathetic.

You're not afraid. Get up.

Get up.

And so is that what informed his fight, fight, fight, of that by the time that he's standing up, he's thinking, I'm a symbol? Or do you think he was thinking, I'm a symbol, this looks pathetic. It makes you look weak.

Stand up. How do you think that actually happened?

SALENA: He thinks, and we just talked about this weeks ago. He -- you know, and this is something that he's really thought about.

Right? You know, he's gone over and over and over. And also, purpose and God. Right? These are things that have lingered with him.

You know, he -- he thought, yes.

He did think, it was pathetic that he was on the ground. But he wasn't thinking about, I'm Donald Trump. It's pathetic.

He's thinking, my country is symbolically on the ground. I need to get up, and I need to show that my country is strong.

That our country is resolute.

And I need people to see that.

We can't go on looking like pathetic.

Right?

And I think that then goes to that image of Biden.

GLENN: You have been with so many presidents.

How many presidents do you think that you've personally been with, would have thought that and reacted that way?

SALENA: Probably only Reagan. Reagan would have. Reagan probably would have thought that.

And if you remember how he was out like standing outside.

You know, waving out the window. Right?

After he was shot.

GLENN: At the hospital, right.

SALENA: Had he not been knocked out, unconscious, you know, he probably would have done the same thing.

Because he was someone who deeply believed in American exceptionalism.

And American exceptionalism does not go lay on the ground.

GLENN: And the symbol.

Right. The symbol of the presidency.

SALENA: Yeah. Absolutely. And I think that affects him today.

GLENN: So let me go back to God.

Because you talked to him the next day. And your book Butler.

He calls you up.

I love the fact that your parents would be ashamed of you. On what you said to him.

The language you used. That you just have to read the book.

It's just a great part.

But he calls you the next morning. And wants to know if you're okay.

And you -- you then start talking to him, about God.

And I was -- I was thinking about this, as I was listening to it. You know, Lincoln said, I wasn't -- I wasn't a Christian.

Even though, he was.

I wasn't a Christian, when I was elected. I wasn't a Christian when my son died.

I became a Christian at Gettysburg.

Is -- is -- I mean, I believe Donald Trump always believes in God, et cetera, et cetera.

Do you think there was a real profound change at Butler with him?


SALENA: Absolutely. You know, he called me seven times that day. Seven times, the take after seven.

GLENN: Crazy.

SALENA: Talked about. And I think he was looking for someone that he knew, that was there. And to try to sort it out.

Right? And I let him do most of the talking. I didn't pressure him.

At all. I believed that he was having -- you know, he was struggling. And he needed to just talk. And I believed my purpose was to listen.

Right? I know other reporters would have handled it differently. And that's okay. That's not the kind of reporter that I am.

And I myself was having my own like, why didn't I die?

Right?

Because it went right over my head.

And -- and so I -- he had the conversation about God.

He's funny. I thought it was the biggest mosquito in the world that hit me.

But he had talked profoundly about purpose. You know, and God.

And how God was in that moment.

It --

GLENN: I love the way you -- in the book, I love the way you said that as he's kind of working it out in his own he head.

He was like, you know, I -- I -- I always knew that there was some sort of, you know -- that God was present.

He said, but now that this has happened.

I look back at all of the trials.

All of the tribulations. Literally, the trials.

All of the things that have happened. And he's like, I realized God was there the whole time.

SALENA: Yes. He does. And it's fascinating to have been that witness to history, to have those conversations with him. Because I'm telling you. And y'all know, I can talk. I didn't say much of anything.

I just -- I just listened. I felt that was my purpose, in that moment.

To give him that space, to work it out.

I'm someone that is, you know, believes in God.

I'm Catholic. I followed my faith.

And -- and so, I thought, well, this is why God put me here. Right?

And to -- to have that -- to hear him talk about purpose, to hear him say, Salena. Why did I put a chart down?

I'm like, sir. I don't know. I thought you were Ross Perot for a second.

He never has a chart. And he laughed. And then he said, why did I put that chart down?

By that term, I never turned my head away from people at the rally. That's true.

That relationship is very transactional. It's very -- they feed off of each other.

It's a very emotive moment when you attend a rally. Because he has a way of talking at a rally. That you believe that you are seeing.

And he said, and I never turn my head away.

I never turn my head away.

Why did I turn my head away?

I don't remember consciously thinking about turning my head away. And then he says to me, that was God, wasn't it?

Yes, sir. It was. It was God.

And he said, that's -- that's why I have a new purpose.

And so, Glenn. I think it's important, when you look at the breadth of what has happened, since he was sworn in.

You see that purpose, every day.

He doesn't let up.

He continues going.

And it brings back to the beginning of the book.

Where you find out, that there was another president that was shot at in Butler.

And that was George Washington. And how different the country would have been, had he died in that moment.

And now think about how different the country would be, had President Trump died in that moment. There would be --

GLENN: We're talking to -- we're talking to Salena Zito. About her new book called Butler. The assassination attempt on President Trump. And it is riveting.

And, you know, it is so good. I wish the press would read it. Because it really explains who we are, who Trump supporters are. Who are, you know, red staters. It is so good at that. She's the best at that.