VIDEO: Michele Bachmann Visits Iowa, Calls Tax Code a Job-Killing Mess

By Hannah Hess
IowaPolitics.com

SHEFFIELD — When it comes to federal tax reform, Minnesota U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann says she wants put the Internal Revenue Service in the back seat while she drives in change.

“The current (federal) tax code is 3.8 million words — it’s a mess — and its’ one big bundle of job-killing, special-interest rules and regulations. That’s all it is, and we can simplify that system,” Bachmann, a former federal tax attorney, said Monday as she outlined her plan to spur economic growth. “I would like to be able to lead the debate on changing our tax code.”

Bachmann spoke Monday before a crowd of 50 employees at Sukup Manufacturing Co., an agricultural equipment producer here, on the first stop of a two-day tour of small businesses. She is campaigning to win the Republican nomination for president. Her campaign stop came on the same day that President Barack Obama unveiled his own $3 trillion long-term deficit reduction plan.

The Minnesota congresswoman said she would focus on reining in spending in Washington, D.C., before revamping the revenue system.

“Imagine in your own life, think of what your wage is, now imagine if you spent double what your wage is,” she said. “You probably wouldn’t make it more than a couple months – I know I wouldn’t.”

Bachmann wore safety glasses and shook hands with the welders and machine operators before delivering her 10-minute speech. While her Republican opponents already have laid out their economic blueprints, the visit gave Bachmann an opportunity to offer Iowans her plan for business growth.

Former state Rep. Steve Sukup, R-Sheffield, who is also the company’s vice president and chief financial officer, guided the congresswoman through rows of grain bin support beams, answering her questions about financial conditions and consumer confidence. He said he came away impressed by “her passion for the fiscal responsibility in D.C.”

Sukup has not yet endorsed a candidate, but said he likes Bachmann.

"I think our economy can recover and hopefully recover fairly quickly, but (voters) want somebody in there that’s going to help balance the budget instead of spending more and more dollars,” Sukup said.

Obama on Monday announced a plan to cut the nation’s $14-trillion deficit, which includes a new minimum tax rate for individuals earning more than $1 million a year. He called the proposal the “Buffet rule,” a reference to billionaire investor Warren Buffet, who has insisted that the wealthy should be paying more taxes.

Bachmann denounced the plan as a gimmick.

"If Warren Buffett believes he doesn't pay enough taxes, then he should write a check today to the Treasury, but he and the president shouldn't enact warfare on the millions of small businesses, on charities and on middle-class America with increased tax burdens,” she said.

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