Jen Psaki, traveling press secretary for the Obama campaign, started the press gaggle aboard Air Force One Sunday by running through the math of Mitt Romney’s tax plan, according to a readout of the gaggle. “I just wanted to go through some simple ‘back of the notecard’ math on how we get to the $5 trillion [number],” Psaki said.
So lowering the rates, as Mitt Romney has said he would do, to 20 percent — $2.7 trillion over 10 years; eliminating the AMT — $700 billion; repealing high-income payroll tax — $300 billion; ending estate tax — $150 billion; lowering the corporate rate from 35 to 25 — $1.1 trillion. That adds up to $4.8 trillion. If you factor in interest for additional borrowing, you get to $5 trillion.
On Sunday, the Romney campaign released a new ad to push back on the claim that his tax plan calls for $5 trillion in cuts, accusing President Obama of “not telling the truth about Mitt Romney’s tax plan.”