Quote:Any American who pays taxes can agree: our tax system is broken and in dire need of repair. While many pro-growth tax reform proposals exist, some Republican leaders, like House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) continue to push a border adjustment tax (BAT).

In simple terms, a BAT would tax imports and subsidize exports. For example, under current tax law, a local retailer could pay $40 to import a gadget that it sells for $50. A retailer can then deduct its cost and only owe tax on the $10 profit. But, with a BAT in place, that retailer would owe corporate taxes on the full $50 sale price.
About one-third of the durable goods that Americans buy are imported, and that number trends higher for those in the low- and middle-income brackets. So, whether they're shopping online or at a local retailer, a BAT will be like a vast hidden sales tax that drives up the cost of purchases and forces retailers to cut costs, including jobs, in order to compete.

Those in favor of a BAT try to rationalize it by arguing it will lead to lower taxes for large corporations, but it would do so at the expense of hardworking American families struggling to make ends meet.  It’s a regressive tax— plain and simple, and Republicans in Congress should not support it.