Why are Economic Leaders Cheerleading a Lousy Bill?

TJCA is Critical, But Kudlow, Moore, and Norquist Have Some Explaining to Do

When economic thought leaders like Larry Kudlow, Stephen Moore, and Grover Norquist fawn over the "One Big Beautiful Bill," I’m disturbed. Their shameless selective cheerleading buries the bill’s ugly and destructive flaws.

This bill is a policy trainwreck, rigged with cronyism and bureaucratic traps. The trio are not the only guilty voices, but they excruciatingly gloss over the elephant in the room. The "One Big Beautiful Bill" is a grotesque mockery of tax reform, bloated with cronyist handouts, bureaucratic nightmares, and deficit-exploding gimmicks that betray every principle of simplicity, fairness, and economic sense.

In his frequent media appearances, Stephen Moore has long praised tax cuts as engines of growth, as seen in his 2024 defenses of extending the 2017 TCJA, while rarely addressing how such policies can balloon deficits or favor corporate interests. He blindly assumes strong growth will result from a bill like the OBBBA, despite the fact that, as he should know, there is very little pro-growth potential in its cronyistic substance. Larry Kudlow, on Fox Business, often sings the praises of “America First” wins, knowing full well that America First is an economic loser and yet sidesteps the bureaucratic complexity or temporary provisions that create uncertainty. He also ignores the economic waste and misallocation of resources that will contribute to the deficit with no benefit to ordinary Americans. Grover Norquist, through Americans for Tax Reform, consistently pushes to prevent TCJA expiration to shield families from tax hikes, but his advocacy downplays carve-outs that benefit interest groups and big business over ordinary taxpayers. He gives a pass to the very bad tax components of the bill, though he could still support it while attacking its flawed parts. Their selective focus risks endorsing flawed legislation without scrutiny.

I’d swallow hard and vote for the bill in Congress, but only to block a TCJA expiration that’d slam small businesses and families I’ve long defended. It’s no victory. It chains tax relief to a deficit bomb, fueled by corporate welfare and gimmicks like temporary 2028 sunsets. Kudlow, Moore, and Norquist, who should champion sound policy, shame themselves with this fanboy drivel. They should denounce this mess, not applaud it. Their growth fantasies and tax-hike scare tactics dodge the truth: the OBBBA’s handouts, complexity, and big-business bias shred liberty. We need a cleaner TCJA extension, not this betrayal of taxpayers for political points.