Now, the idea of cutting taxes in a recession and cutting Federal spending is not new. JFK understood that principle. He cut taxes when he was President during a recession and put us back on a good economic footing. Ronald Reagan had the biggest tax cut just about in the history of the country until Bush came along, and the same thing. People made fun of him, that it was trickle-down economics and all that kind of stuff; but the fact of the matter was the economy became strong, and he had to have a strong economy to face the threats of Communism in the Soviet Union. And ultimately he bankrupted the USSR because of the fact that our economy was strong enough that they couldn't keep up with us in the arms race, and he basically got them to the point of 'tear down this wall.' But it was based on this same principle of the fact that he had tremendously cut the taxes which allowed the American economy to surge and allow free enterprise and the businessmen to start making some money.
Editor's note · Context
The speaker discusses the historical context of tax cuts during recessions and their impact on the economy.
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