Biden says higher corporate tax would not hurt U.S. economy as Manchin opposes 28% rate

Biden says higher corporate tax would not hurt U.S. economy as Manchin opposes 28% rate

President Joe Biden talks to reporters on the South Lawn of the White House, in Washington, U.S., March 14, 2021.

President Joe Biden said Monday that he is not worried that a plan to increase corporate America's tax bill would dampen the U.S. economy as it emerges from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Asked whether he is concerned that the White House plan to raise the corporate rate to 28% could harm an already-fragile recovery, Biden replied "not at all."

"There's no evidence of that," the president said from the South Lawn of the White House. "Here you have 51 or 52 corporations in the Fortune 500 that haven't paid a single penny in taxes for three years."

The proposed increase to the corporate rate is part of the administration's effort to fund its $2 trillion infrastructure proposal, a plan many Democrats promised to pass during the 2020 election cycle.

But while politicians on both sides of the aisle agree that American roads and bridges are in need of extensive repair, fierce disagreements over other priorities and the ultimate size of the bill remain.

Biden and progressive Democrats favor a raft of spending, including $621 billion in transportation infrastructure, $400 billion to care for elderly and disabled Americans,