Biden's proposed tax hikes will do 'great damage’ to middle-income families: Kudlow

Fox Business anchor Larry Kudlow slammed President Biden's “killer” corporate and small business proposed tax increases on Thursday, arguing that they would do “great damage to middle income, blue collar-type families.”

The former National Economic Council director made the comments on “America’s Newsroom” one day after White House press secretary Jen Psaki clarified that Biden's proposed $400,000 threshold for tax increases applies to families, rather than individuals, meaning the hike could hit individuals who earn $200,000 a year if they are married to someone who makes the same amount.

Kudlow explained that the latest development means that “more people are going to be subjected to this tax hike.”

He noted that a husband and wife each earning $200,000 a year “will each get hit by this,” adding that the wife may get “hit harder” because “her income comes on top of her husband's and is taxed at a higher rate.”

Biden has repeatedly pledged to raise taxes on any American earning more than $400,000, but promised — as recently as this week — that no one making less than that will see "one single penny in additional federal tax."

Psaki, on Wednesday, did not specify a threshold for individual earners.

BIDEN REPORTEDLY PLANNING FIRST MAJOR TAX HIKE SINCE 1993

Biden is eyeing the next big-ticket economic bill as a vehicle for one of the major tax hikes in close to 30 years, according to Bloomberg News, citing a person familiar with the matter.

The planned changes include: raising the corporate tax rate to 28% from 21%, raising the income tax rate on individuals earning more than $400,000, expanding the estate tax, creating a higher capital-gains tax rate for individuals earning at least $1 million annually and paring back tax preferences for so-called pass-through businesses.

The proposed tax increases mostly mirror Biden's proposals during the 2020 presidential campaign, when he vowed to reverse former President Donald Trump's 2017 tax cuts on "day one" of his presidency. That includes raising the rate paid by corporations and wealthy Americans and making the tax code more progressive.

Kudlow said on Thursday that the “key point that team Biden does not want to acknowledge” is that an increase to corporate tax and the small business tax will be “a killer.”

“Small businesses will get slammed, corporations will have to cut back on wages and jobs and investments and you repeal the Trump tax cuts, you’re going to repeal all those middle-income benefits,” Kudlow said.

Biden acknowledged that he's unlikely to secure any Republican support for any type of tax increases, but said he would receive Democratic votes.

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Any tax increases included in the legislation would likely take effect beginning in 2022, with some lawmakers wary of raising rates until the economy more fully recovers from the coronavirus pandemic.

Kudlow also argued on Thursday that “if you want to grow the local economy you should be cutting taxes, not raising them.”

A White House spokesperson did not immediately respond to Fox Business’ request for comment.

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Fox Business’ Megan Henney contributed to this report.