Joe Manchin Rejects Biden’s Call for a 28 Percent Corporate Tax Rate, But Still Wants Higher Taxes

Senator Joe Manchin has rejected President Biden’s proposal to hike the corporate tax rate to 28 percent, which is a key way that the administration wants to raise money to partially offset the new infrastructure bill.

But it’s worth noting that Manchin has recently indicated he was broadly supportive of a large infrastructure package and would be open to raising the corporate income tax from 21 percent to “at least 25 percent.” And Manchin has even floated a value-added tax, which would incidentally be regressive, as consumption-based taxes tend to hurt lower-income individuals who spend a higher percentage of what they earn.

So it isn’t clear that Manchin has any hard principle at stake on taxes that would be a dealbreaker for Biden’s spending proposals. I mean, why be open to “at least 25 percent” but find 28 percent over the top? It seems as if he just wants to be seen as somehow less liberal than the median Democrat, even while voting with Democrats on most major issues when push comes to shove.