Conservative commentator Ami Horowitz recently took to the streets of the “liberal Mecca” East Village to see how die-hard progressives felt about the Republican tax reform bill that Democrats have literally declared “the end of the world.” Horowitz asked several passersby for their reaction to specific measures in the bill and, shockingly, found they they uniformly loved it — well, at least when presented as the “Bernie” tax plan.
“The Republicans recently voted on a new tax proposal, and, predictably, the Democrats didn’t like it,” says Horowitz in the intro of the digital short. “But what if they thought the Republican plan was actually Bernie Sanders’ proposal? We presented them with the Republican tax plan and pretended that it was in fact Bernie’s plan.”
Horowitz begins by asking interviewees, most of whom appear to be millennials, how they feel in general about the Republican tax plan.
“I’m going to be honest with you, I feel like this is just another excuse for rich people to get a break on having to pay taxes like the rest of us hardworking people have to pay,” says one guy in a “Hella!” hat. “It doesn’t have much stuff in it for the middle class working Americans, I think,” says one scarf-wearing girl, who adds, “But that’s just what I’ve heard.”
“Seems like the middle class is going to get hit pretty hard here,” says a guy in sunglasses. “Um, they suck — they all suck,” a smiling guy says about the Republicans. “There’s a lot about the current proposed tax plan that’s just ridiculous,” says a dude with an impressive beard.
But when Horowitz presents the details of Bernie’s supposed “competing plan,” which is actually just the maligned Republican plan, all of the interviewees change their tune dramatically.
The people who just blasted the Republicans’ plan tell Horowitz they like the idea of most families of four making $50,000 or less not having to pay any taxes at all, doubling the child tax credit from $1,000 to $2,000, people with mortgages of over $750,000 having to pay more, keeping the Obama-era clean energy tax credits, and at least one guy even seems okay with the idea that “Bernie” was lowering corporate taxes.
“It’s fantastic,” says beard guy of the “Bernie” plan. “I think that’s a step in the right direction,” says scarf girl. “It’s all just rational with Bernie, and with Trump it’s not,” says a girl in a larger scarf.
When Horowitz reveals that he’s just described the Republican plan, most of them agree they’d be willing to give it a closer look now.
WATCH: