Senate Dem refutes Mnuchin: You can make a tax plan without helping the rich

Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) early Monday refuted Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s claim that it is difficult to slash taxes without helping the wealthy.

“When … Secretary Mnuchin said there’s no way you can give a tax break to the middle class without advantaging the rich — that’s not true. I could do a tax credit to just those earners,” Heitkamp told CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” 

Mnuchin had argued during an interview with Politico last week that “cutting taxes across the board” makes it difficult not to trim taxes for wealthy Americans. 

{mosads}“The top 20 percent of the people pay 95 percent of the taxes. The top 10 percent of the people pay 81 percent of the taxes,” Mnuchin told the news outlet.

“So when you’re cutting taxes across the board, it’s very hard not to give tax cuts to the wealthy with tax cuts to the middle class.”

Heitkamp’s challenge to Mnuchin’s argument comes as Republicans push a tax-reform framework that includes lowering the corporate tax rate.

While conservative groups have lauded the tax plan, Democrats have slammed it as a tax cut for the wealthy.