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PRESS RELEASE FROM AMERICANS FOR TAX REFORM
Contact: John Kartch (
jkartch@atr.org or 202-785-0266)
Click
here for Adobe Acrobat version.
8/13/01
Reagan's
Legacy 20 Years Later:
The
Kemp-Roth Tax Cut Anniversary
WASHINGTON,
August 13th - Most Americans credit President Ronald Reagan
with the fall of the Soviet Empire. Others credit him for the renewal
of American patriotism and pride. But today marks the 20th
anniversary of Ronald Reagan's greatest domestic achievement: Passage
of the Kemp-Roth tax relief plan on August 13th, 1981.
Americans
across the nation who admired the 40th president's leadership
can today celebrate passage of Kemp-Roth, which lowered personal income
taxes by 30% across the board, reversing oppressive bracket-creep and
the 70% brackets that burdened taxpayers throughout the Carter years.
The cut totaled 3.3% of GDP, dwarfing both President Kennedy's
tax cut (2.2% of GDP) and President George W. Bush's tax cut (1.1% of
GDP).
Grover
Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, called Kemp-Roth "a
genuine restoration of America's tradition of low taxes and free enterprise,
at a time when she needed it most. Prosperity of today's scale could
never have existed without Kemp-Roth."
"When
Reagan ascended to the presidency in 1981, he inherited an economic
crisis of disastrous proportions. Inflation ran 13.5%, industrial production
had dropped, interest rates soared at 21.5%, and marginal taxes reached
heights of 70%. His bold agenda sought deep across-the-board tax cuts,
spending cuts, massive deregulation of industry, and sound monetary
policies. And his policies were a staggering success: By the
end of his tenure in 1988, America was on the way to her longest peacetime
economic expansion thus far, creating over 20 million new jobs in the
process."
Norquist
concluded: "Ronald Reagan's legacy pervades all aspects of American
life, from America's renewed courage in international affairs, to the
emancipation of hundreds of millions of people from Soviet despotism,
to the benefits we Americans feel every day from the easing of our tax
burdens. The legacy of Kemp-Roth lives on, and President George
W. Bush's tax relief plan is the latest renewal of those ideals. Most
importantly, more tax relief is on the way."
###
Americans for Tax Reform is a non-partisan
coalition of taxpayers and taxpayer groups who oppose any and all federal
and state tax increases. For
more information, or to arrange an interview with Mr. Norquist please contact John Kartch at (202)785-0266 or by email at
jkartch@atr.org.
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