Speaker Johnson Lays out GOP Agenda    10/02 06:10

   

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- Speaker Mike Johnson laid out on Tuesday a policy agenda 
should Republicans take the majority next year that extends the tax cuts 
approved when Donald Trump was president, reduces the size of the federal 
workforce and gives parents more choice on where they can send their children 
to school.

   Johnson emphasized five main policy points during a speech at the New York 
Stock Exchange. He talked of extending and building on the Trump tax cuts, 
confronting China, boosting oil and gas production, expanding school choice and 
cutting the size and scope of the federal government.

   "The survival of the American dream depends upon our victory," Johnson said.

   The speaker and House Republicans are fighting this election season to hold 
their narrow House majority, with just a handful of seats to spare. Republicans 
are hopeful that a Trump victory over Vice President Kamala Harris in the 
election will help propel them to majorities in the House and Senate, which 
would give them unified control of Washington for the first time since 2018 and 
the ability to enact a sweeping legislative agenda.

   Against the campaign backdrop, Johnson provided a bleak view of the economy 
under President Joe Biden, though the economy continues to grow at a solid 
pace, inflation is on the decline and the unemployment rate is still low by 
historical standards. He spoke to an audience of Wall Street investors, traders 
and others who have witnessed stock markets reach record highs in recent days.

   But Johnson said that as he has traveled the country, he's meeting business 
owners on the verge of collapse because of high inflation, high taxes and 
over-regulation. And he said he's met moms and dads who have resorted to 
donating plasma and setting up crowdfunding pages so that they didn't lose 
their homes.

   "Our incredible people are hanging on right now in spite of so many 
unprecedented challenges, but many can't afford to do it much longer," Johnson 
said.

   The first policy priority he outlined was enhanced tax breaks, citing 
specifically immediate expensing for research and development costs. He also 
cited the need for a "strong" child tax credit, though he did not provide 
specific numbers. He said the Republican tax policies would "respect the 
dignity of work, and it doesn't pay people more for staying out of the 
workforce."

   Trump has laid out a series of tax cuts on the campaign trail, such as 
extending the expiring provisions of his 2017 overhaul, and not taxing tips and 
Social Security. Outside experts say the tax cuts proposed by Trump and 
Democratic nominee Kamala Harris would cause the debt to rise even faster the 
pace under current law.

   Doing more to confront China and rolling back environmental regulations are 
a common denominator for Republicans that Johnson embraced in his speech. On 
education, he said millions of Americans have the opportunity to send their 
children to a school that best fits their need, and "Republicans want to expand 
that choice so that every American has that opportunity."

   Johnson also emphasized cutting the debt by cutting the size of the federal 
government, saying "we're going to reduce the size of the federal workforce and 
root out a long list of non-essential jobs through the federal bureaucracy."

   "It's hard to roll back the entrenched bureaucracy and face the system that 
has produced the decline. It's a difficult task, but it's a task that can be 
achieved," Johnson said.