U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz campaigned through San Antonio on Tuesday, joined by the leaders of state and national business groups who say they need to keep him in office to ensure Trump-era tax cuts remain in place for businesses.
Republicans’ 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act permanently slashed the corporate tax rate, while also lowering the tax rate for individuals, but on a temporary basis.
Now as the tax cuts on individuals are set to expire next year, Democrats have proposed raising corporate taxes back up as a means to offset them, while Republicans are proposing cutting corporate taxes even further as a means to create more jobs.
Speaking to several dozen business leaders and GOP activists at Hotel Emma on Tuesday, Neil Bradley, chief policy officer for U.S. Chamber of Commerce said his group was endorsing Cruz for reelection this year, in part because of that impending political fight.
When it comes to the expiring tax cuts, Bradley said, “We don’t have to guess where Senator Cruz is… he’s outlined a plan that actually continues to lower taxes for businesses across the state of Texas and the nation.”
Bradley was joined by Texas Association of Business President and CEO Glenn Hammer and International Bank of Commerce CEO Dennis Nixon.
Cruz’s new alliance with the business lobby comes as he’s more often cashed checks from conservative groups at odds with the GOP establishment, and his opponent, U.S. Rep. Colin Allred (D-Dallas) is one of the few Democrats the U.S. Chamber has embraced.
But as Republicans look increasingly likely to regain control of the Senate this year, the business lobby— which is one of the biggest spenders on behalf of GOP candidates and causes at the federal level — is cozying up to a potentially powerful ally.
Cruz is currently the highest-ranking Republican on the Senate’s Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation as of 2021.
The role has put him in close contact with both local and national business leaders, who leaned on him for help with priorities like getting a direct flight from San Antonio International Airport (SAT) to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).
“When, as we all hope, he serves as the next chairman of the Commerce Committee, [we don’t have to worry] about what he’s going to do to reduce the regulatory burden on businesses,” Bradley told Tuesday’s gathering. “So for those of us in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, it was a pretty easy decision” to back his reelection bid.
Cruz famously put out a tax plan when he was running for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016, which called for doing away with the taxes that state and federal governments collect on business profits.
An analysis from the Urban Institute and the Brookings Institution said Cruz’s plan would generally cut taxes for people at all income levels, but the wealthy would see the biggest benefit.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Cruz said he still broadly believes the best approach to the tax code is easing the burden on businesses.
“If you care about jobs, it’s actually not rocket science,” Cruz said. “Two thirds of all new jobs in our economy come from small businesses. That means, if you want lots and lots of jobs, you want to create an environment — a tax and regulatory environment — where small businesses grow and prosper and expand.”
