Few Republican lawmakers have publicly supported a bill to replace most federal taxes with a national sales tax, a plan that has almost no chance of becoming law, or even passing in the GOP-led House of Representatives — certainly not in the 118th Congress.
But that has not stopped several Democratic leaders from suggesting that the bill has wide support among congressional Republicans.
“And the so-called FairTax Act is another example of the extremist agenda that Republicans are trying to jam down the throats of the American people,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a Jan. 25 press conference. “This legislation is extreme and it is functionally the GOP tax scam part two.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who joined Jeffries at the joint press briefing, called the bill “the craziest yet” and “a real doozy.” “It’s hard to believe they came up with it,” Schumer said of Republicans. He later said: “We have to fight this plan now before it gains any more steam. Too many Republicans support it.”
In an economic speech the following day, President Joe Biden said Republicans “want to impose a 30% national sales tax on everything from food, clothing, school supplies, housing, cars — a whole deal.”
We do not know the total number of House Republicans who support the plan, but more than five — including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise — have said they do not. That is…
