OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill. -- As more and more cities and states consider enacting taxes on sugar-sweetened drinks—in part to raise funding, in part to battle obesity—the arguments for and against have risen to the level of national attention.
More than one member of Congress has made preludes—albeit unsuccessful—to establishing a federal tax on such drinks. And more recently, the issue has entered the presidential-candidate debate.
Here’s a look at where each of the major candidates stands on the issue:
In Philadelphia, where Mayor Jim Kenney has proposed a 3-cent-per-ounce (36 cents per can) tax on sugar-sweetened beverages to help fund universal prekindergarten, Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton backed the effort.
“I'm very supportive of the mayor's proposal to tax soda to get universal preschool for kids,” she said in April. “I mean, we need universal preschool. And if that's a way to do it, that's how we should do it.”
Not surprisingly, Sen. Bernie Sanders, who continues to rival Clinton for the White House despite her clinching the nomination, felt differently, strongly supporting the idea of universal preschool but suggesting that the poor would be the hardest hit by the proposed tax.
“I do not support paying for this proposal through a regressive tax on soda that will significantly increase taxes on low-income and middle-income Americans,” he said. “At a time of massive income and wealth inequality, it should be the people on top who see an increase in their taxes, not low-income and working people.”
Somewhere in between is Republican candidate Donald Trump, who has not addressed the subject directly and once tweeted, “I’ve never seen a thin person drinking Diet Coke.” His stance on sales taxes in general, however, suggests ambivalence.
While Trump has not specified a new tax plan in the run-up to his 2016 candidacy, he has indicated that he supports a flat income tax and a so-called “Fair Tax” (a national sales tax). And can the U.S. expect a lot of tax revenue coming from Trump himself? Not if he can help.
"I try and pay as little tax as possible, because I hate what they do with my tax money,” he said in January. “I hate the way they spend our money."
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