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The Point

Oren Cass Wants To Raise Your Taxes

Analysis

This week, the podcast Conservative Crossroads, hosted by the Ethics and Public Policy Center’s Henry Olsen, held a debate between Oren Cass, the founder of American Compass and American Tax Reform founder, president, and CEO Grover Norquist on a simple question: “Should Conservatives Raise Taxes?” You can listen to the episode in full here.

As Pinpoint has pointed out time and again over the past two years, Cass made clear that yes, he believes that conservatives should raise taxes. Cass has been consistent on this point, calling President Trump’s signature first-term domestic achievement, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA) an “expensive failure.”

In his debate with Norquist, Cass actually makes the case for at least four tax increases. This may not be surprising to those familiar with Cass’s record – and the millions that American Compass has accepted from liberal foundations – but it is notable for someone pitching himself as the architect of a “new conservative economics.”

To recap, here are the four tax increases that Cass supports in this latest podcast episode:

  • Raise the Top Income Tax Brackets: Cass called for restoring the “top couple of rates” to their pre-2017 levels, reversing the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that every Republican in Congress voted for and that Vice President J.D. Vance’s tiebreaking vote made permanent earlier this year. Increasing the top rate to 39.6% has been a perennial Democrat talking point.
  • Raise the Corporate Tax Rate to 25%: Cass wants to raise the federal corporate tax rate from 21% to 25%, similar to the proposals from former President Biden and former Vice President Harris’ efforts. Combined with state-level corporate taxes, that would put the U.S. effective rate around 29%, far above China’s rate of 15% for many industries.
  • Financial Transaction Tax: Cass called for a tax on stock, bond, and derivative trades, one that he has been advocating for years, which American Compass has acknowledged has “long been associated with progressives like Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders.” The Senate version of this, the Wall Street Tax Act, was introduced by Warren and cosponsored by progressive allies including Sheldon Whitehouse, Jeff Merkley, and Chris Van Hollen.

Conclusion

Cass’ tax proposals are straight from the Democratic Party’s wish list, and are the same proposals that lost at the ballot box and were rejected in the One Big Beautiful Bill. When conservatives debate fiscal policy, they deserve a conversation based on first principles, and not one based on proposals authored by progressives.

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