TikToker Dean Withers schooled a MAGA voter who tried to blame a tax code implemented by President Donald Trump during his first term on Democrats.
Withers, who is well known for debating Trump supporters on camera, spoke with a woman who claimed that during "the last four years we've been held hostage under Democratic rule." The woman said "we've had more taxes" and "we pay more for everything" under Democrats.
Withers saw an opportunity and asked:
"Wait, you think taxes have been really high in the last four years, right? ... I just want to clarify: You didn't like Biden and Harris' tax code?"
The woman laughed and said, "I did not" before pushing back on the inconvenient fact that she was angry about Trump's tax code but blaming it on former President Barack Obama.
Withers then pointed out:
"In 2017, Donald Trump passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which was his tax code and [is] set to expire this year, meaning under the entire Biden-Harris administration, we were under Donald Trump's tax code. You just told us that you hated that tax code and you'd never vote for it again under any circumstances."
The woman replied:
"I would never vote for a Democratic regime, ever."
But Withers shut her down completely:
"So it had nothing to do with what they're doing and all to do with the fact that they're Democrats. Party over country every single day. You're a member of a cult."
You can watch the exchange in the video below.
Many of Trump's wealthy donors were staunch supporters of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA), which is based on tax reform advocated by congressional Republicans and the Trump administration.
Interestingly, Speaker Mike Johnson has gone on record calling it "the first comprehensive tax reform in 31 years" that "will dramatically strengthen the U.S. economy and restore economic mobility and opportunity for hardworking individuals and families all across this country."
However, a CBO analysis at the time found the plan "gives substantial tax cuts and benefits to Americans earning more than $100,000 a year"—hitting the nation's poorest citizens particularly hard—and the legislation would "add an increase in the deficit of $1,414 billion over the next 10 years."
In 2019, the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service (CRS) released a report indicating the GOP tax bill was not beneficial to the economy, noting growth effects were "relatively small," the tax bill did not have positive effects on workers' bonuses, and it did not usher in a surge in wages.
People loved the way Withers handled it—and felt the clip said everything you need to know about the MAGA movement.
Withers recently went viral after showing visible frustration during a conversation with a MAGA voter who made clear they had no idea how inflation is actually defined, asking if inflation "is the only reason that prices go up is due to inflation, is that the only reason that prices will go up."
When Withers noted that "inflation is defined as prices going up," the voter accused Withers of "not getting it," prompting Withers to stress that the person had just asked, with no sense of irony whatsoever, if "the only reason for rising prices [is] rising prices."
@jaketapoer/Bluesky
