Laffer, credited for tax-cut policies, gets Medal of Freedom from Trump

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Wednesday to economist Arthur Laffer, whose disputed theories on tax cuts have guided Republican policy since the 1980s.

Laffer, 78, advised Trump during his presidential campaign and co-wrote a book, Trumponomics: Inside the America First Plan to Revive Our Economy. Laffer says lower tax rates change people’s behavior and stimulate economic growth, creating more tax revenue for the government.

Allies credit Laffer with helping to spur income tax reductions and boosting national economies as a result. Critics say the tax cuts he has espoused over the years have not produced the promised results and have instead contributed to growing income inequality and soaring budget deficits.

“Few people in history have revolutionized economic thought and policy like Dr. Art Laffer,” Trump said during a ceremony in the Oval Office.

The president credits his $1.5 trillion tax-cut package for boosting the economy, which sported a 3.6% unemployment rate in May and has U.S. stock markets standing near record highs. But the federal deficit also soared. It’s up nearly 40% through the first eight months of the budget year.

Jared Bernstein, who served as an economic adviser to Vice President Joe Biden, said Laffer is probably the most influential economist living today. He said his biggest accomplishment is convincing politicians that tax cuts will pay for themselves.

“He had consistently espoused that tax cuts for the wealthy will generate significant growth, thereby helping pay for themselves and boosting the incomes of low and middle-income people. None of that has occurred,” said Bernstein, now a senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal think tank.

Laffer, who was also an adviser to President Ronald Reagan, is sometimes referred to as the “father of supply-side economics.” He said he did not invent the philosophy and quoted economist John Maynard Keynes in summarizing it. “Given sufficient time to gather the fruit, a reduction of taxation will run a better chance than an increase of balancing the budget.”

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the nation’s highest civilian honor, awarded for especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interest of the U.S., or for significant cultural endeavors.