The Right's Tax Identity Crisis - by Adam Michel
adamnmichel.substack.com
Republicans' 2025 tax bill quietly fuses two contradictory theories of taxation — and the tension between them may define what the party actually stands for.
Supply-Side EconomicsFiscal Policy TheoryPolitical Identity TheoryPublic Choice Theory
Theory Briefing
- The 2025 Republican tax bill is built on two opposing theories, suggesting the party hasn't settled on a single coherent fiscal identity.
- One theory is described as familiar to anyone following Republican politics, implying a long-standing supply-side tradition is still in play.
- The coexistence of rival frameworks inside one bill raises the question of whether the contradictions are a bug or a deliberate political compromise.
- Tax policy built on internal contradictions can produce unpredictable real-world outcomes when the two logics pull spending and revenue in opposite directions.