I just don’t see it...
Here is how I read it:
Now:
“Bill’s Widgets” grosses $100K for 2015, subtracts a myriad of federal corp tax loophole deductions and pays a 35% corporate tax on say $50K.
Cruz plan:
“Bill’s Widgets” grosses $100K for 2015, subtracts a very limited set of legit business expenses and pays a 16% corporate tax on say $80K.
Am I way off? Possibly, but that is how I read it based on plain english. And nothing in either the Cruz or Trump corporate tax plans looks remotely like a VAT.
Yes, way off. In this scenario Bill determines what he will sell his widgets for based on cost of production and without regard for any tax considerations. Once that price is fixed, before he ships it off to the retailer he will add the 16% business tax to the bill. The retailer pays it, then the consumer pays it. The only difference between this and a VAT tax is where the add on is added and who collects it. This is essentially a Federal Sales Tax.
Weren't you on FR, too, when this was raging, way back when?