TIM BATTLE: Lower tax rates for the benefit of all

An American president once said, "It is a paradoxical truth that tax rates are too high today and tax revenues are too low and the soundest way to raise the revenues in the long run is to cut the tax rates now."

In fact, tax revenues did increase under reduced tax rates in the immediate years following that statement.

Tax revenues increased because of rising output, higher employment rates to produce that output, the resulting rise in incomes and increased tax revenues due to the increased incomes of all. Rather than redistributing wealth, lower tax rates help to create wealth for everyone.

Who was this president? It was John F. Kennedy, one of the very few Democrats who understood that "supply-side economics" do work. By moving money from tax shelters and using it to grow the economy and help everyone, Kennedy demonstrated his understanding of how tax cuts change investment behavior.

This "paradox" also became a "truth" under Republican presidents Coolidge, Reagan and George W. Bush.

TIM BATTLE

Ocean Springs

This story was originally published February 25, 2016 at 7:44 PM with the headline "TIM BATTLE: Lower tax rates for the benefit of all ."