ALEXANDRIA, Va. — South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, a 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful, said the governing philosophy of Republicans such as former President Ronald Reagan, who signed across-the-board tax rate cuts to grow the economy, should not be repeated in the future.
“What we’ve seen is that the rising tide rose, right? GDP went up. Growth went up. Productivity went up — big numbers went up and most of our boats didn’t budge. For 90 percent of Americans, you start the clock right around the time I’m born. Income didn’t move at all — so lower to middle income, really, almost all of us,” Buttigieg said during a campaign fundraiser in Alexandria, Va., on Friday.
“And what we’ve learned is that supply-side idea that you just cut taxes and make the rich better off and it will find its way to the rest of us is wrong and the Reagan neo-liberal era is now over,” he added.
Buttigieg was not available to answer follow-up questions from reporters at the event.
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