Pub. 1 2013 Issue 2

spring 2013 5 erosion of the tax base will result in higher tax rates on everyone else in the long run. Our nation is at a crossroads. We have to come to grips with how much government we can afford and how are we going to pay for it. We need states- men who can see the forest despite the trees that block the vision of so many. They should start by applying the first principles of sound tax policy. Only by applying taxes broadly and fairly can we achieve the lowest possible tax rates. This limits economic destruc- tion and maximizes economic growth. Once again, the statesmen in the Utah Legislature got this right. Congress would do well to follow their lead. n The existence of tax policies in the banking sector that pick winners and losers and distort how capital is deployed are particularly destructive to the overall economy.