Florida governor and 2024 GOP contender Ron DeSantis said he would gladly sign a bill as president that defunded and abolished the IRS while setting up a different system of taxing Americans that is fairer to everyone.
His comments came during a conversation with radio host and Second Amendment advocate Dana Loesch on The Dana Show, streaming on The First TV network.
During the interview, DeSantis faced a question about his stance on a congressional measure to defund the IRS and what alternative system he would support as a replacement.
“Are you for a far tax, a flat tax, where do you stand on that?” Loesch asked.
“So, the answer’s yes. I think the IRS is a corrupt organization and I think it’s not a friend to the average citizen or taxpayer,” DeSantis said. “We need something totally different.”
“I’ve supported all of the single rate proposals, I think they would be a huge improvement over the current system and I would be welcoming to take this tax system, chunk it out the window and do something that’s more favorable to the average folks.”
DeSantis: “Yes,” I would defund the IRS. pic.twitter.com/jL3IWTmAAa
— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) May 27, 2023
DeSantis, who has been a vocal critic of the IRS for its perceived unfair practices and targeting of the middle class, previously expressed his disapproval of the Biden administration’s proposal to expand the IRS with 87,000 new agents, viewing it as a sign of disrespect.
“Of all the things that have come out of Washington that have been outrageous, this has got to be pretty close to the top,” DeSantis said in August. “I think it was basically just the middle finger to the American public, that this is what they think of you.”
DeSantis emphasized the idea that the actions of Washington were indicative of them “going after” individuals, specifically pointing out that the proposed influx of new IRS agents could potentially target small business owners and hardworking individuals who rely on regular jobs to make a living.
“They are going to go after independent contractors, they’re going to go after small business people, they’re going to go after someone that may be driving an Uber or a handyman or all these things,” DeSantis added then. “Why would they do that? Because you’re not going to be able to contend with the audit, so they’re going to crush a lot of people by doing that.”
During a Fox News interview in 2013, as a member of Congress, DeSantis said he believed that the IRS “is really past its point of usefulness.”
“I think we need to move to a fair or flat tax and give the government less power,” DeSantis, then a member of the House Oversight and Judiciary committee, opined.
