Going Bold: Paul Ryan & Kevin Brady on Tax Reform

Ten years ago, then-Speaker Paul Ryan and Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady released the “Better Way” Tax Plan, the blueprint that would eventually become the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017—the largest overhaul of the US tax code in over 30 years.

With the national debt climbing, Social Security heading toward insolvency, and tariffs reshaping the economy, the next round of reforms will demand bold ideas and a serious look at the trade-offs they carry.

In this special anniversary episode of The Deduction, hosts Erica York and Kyle Hulehan sit down with the plan’s original architects to talk through how it came together, the bold bets they made (and the ones that didn’t pan out, like the border adjustment tax), what a decade of hindsight reveals about its economic impact, and where tax reform goes from here.

GUESTS:

• Paul Ryan—Former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; former Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee
• Kevin Brady—Former Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee

HOSTS:

• Erica York & Kyle Hulehan, Tax Foundation

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 – Cold Open: The Walgreens Story
0:35 – Welcome to The Deduction
1:19 – How the Better Way Tax Plan Began
3:12 – Becoming Speaker and Ways & Means Chair
4:57 – Why They Decided to "Go Bold"
6:18 – The Vision: Ending Corporate Inversions
7:33 – Destination-Based Cash Flow Tax & Border Adjustment
9:58 – Designing a Tax Code Built for Growth
10:53 – The 2019 Results: Wages, Poverty & Inequality
14:01 – Why Border Adjustment Didn't Survive Politically
19:37 – The Corporate Rate as the "Crown Jewel"
22:14 – Stopping the Inversion Wave
23:36 – What's the Next Motivator for Tax Reform?
25:22 – Kevin's Wishlist: What They'd Still Change
27:21 – House vs. Senate: What Got Left on the Table
28:57 – Revenue Neutrality and the National Debt
30:38 – Winning Over Industry: Building Trust
32:10 – The Case for Entitlement Reform
34:07 – Fixing a Broken Budget Process
38:23 – Final Thoughts: Why Think Tanks Matter
39:51 – The Tax Foundation's Role Then and Now

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