Child tax credit battles: Sen. Josh Hawley (R–Mo.) is pitching the idea of raising the child tax credit from $2,000 per child to $5,000 per child and allowing parents to take advantage of such credit not only once the child is born but also retroactively for the year prior when the mother was pregnant.
This plan would reportedly cost $2 trillion to $3 trillion over the next 10 years, per Bloomberg. But tax credits are simply allowing people to keep more of their earnings, instead of the government being entitled to taking them. The problem is when tax revenue shrinks yet government spending doesn't keep pace, we deepen the deficit hole we're already in.
