Trump to Pitch Tax Plan as Boon for Truckers

WASHINGTON (CN) - President Donald Trump will bring his tax-reform plan to truck drivers Wednesday evening in a speech in Pennsylvania, his third direct pitch of the Republican plan in as many weeks.

At his latest stop, Trump will argue that his tax-reform framework will benefit truckers by lowering their tax rates, boosting manufacturing and making it easier for families to pass their trucking businesses onto their children, the White House says.

"When your trucks are moving, America is growing. That is why my administration is taking historic steps to remove the barriers that slow you down," he's expected to say, according to excerpts provided by the White House. "America first means putting American truckers first."

The rest of the speech Trump will give Wednesday will be largely similar to those he delivered on the Republican proposal in Indianapolis and Washington, D.C., late last month, but will focus on how the tax proposal will benefit truckers, according to a senior administration official.

"Truckers, from the president's perspective, are really the lifeblood of our economy," a senior administration official told reporters on a press call Tuesday.

Trump will tell truck drivers in attendance that the Republican plan to simplify tax filing, primarily through a larger standard deduction, will benefit them. He will also highlight the cut to the small business tax rate, which Trump will say would benefit those who file their taxes as pass-throughs.

"Nothing gets done in America without the hardworking men and women of the trucking industry," Trump plans on saying, as conveyed by the senior administration official. "America depends on you for the fuel that powers our cars, the produce that nourishes our communities and the beautiful steel that sends up our tallest skyscrapers."

The Trump administration, along with congressional Republicans, released a loose tax-reform proposal last month, calling for a draw down to three tax brackets from seven, as well as cuts to both the top individual tax rate and the corporate rate.

The proposal has not yet been formed into concrete legislation, but Democrats have vocally opposed the tax plan, calling it a break for the wealthy offset by a tax hike on some middle class Americans.

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