House Republicans continue demanding cuts to federal spending. Representative Byron Donalds (R-FL), a primary voice in the debate, recently discussed the matter with NBC's Chuck Todd in an appearance on Meet the Press.
Rep. Donalds reiterated the Republican call to return to pre-COVID spending levels, which he described as "commonsense."
"Now you have $32 trillion on the credit card, and all House Republicans are saying is, "let's go back to pre-pandemic spending." That's commonsense stuff," said Donalds.
Todd attempted to counter by pointing out that Republicans also call for a reduction in Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agents, saying he did not understand why people would resist the IRS's expansion "unless you knowingly cheat on your taxes."
In August, the Inflation Reduction Act called for the hiring of 87,000 new agents for the IRS, which included a highly-controversial job listing that required the use of "deadly force" that was heavily criticized by Republicans, including Donalds.
Donalds quickly riposted Todd's remark, calling his claim "salacious." Moreover, Donalds stated not only do the vast majority of Americans pay their taxes, but an IRS expansion would hurt the middle class far more than the wealthy.
"First of all, that's salacious, and you know that. Most Americans, by far, pay their taxes, and they do it honorably. What House Republicans and, frankly, the Republican Party is concerned about; is having IRS agents go after middle-class families and small business owners. When you have that many more agents, it's not to go after the rich; it's to go after the middle class. That's what it's for," Donalds continued.
Todd reiterated his previous point that honest taxpayers should not worry over the expansion, only for Donalds to counter again, saying tax receipt data does not justify expanding the IRS. Instead, the Biden Administration seeks to "find every possible nickel out of every couch from every American to pay for his radical spending."
"You would make the assumption that IRS audits are up. That they're putting out more liens on the American people; that's not true. That data's not there. All Joe Biden's trying to do is find every possible nickel out of every couch from every American to pay for his radical spending. Why would we do that?" Donalds concluded.
