STEPHEN MOORE: Show Me The Money – Trump Tax Cuts Benefit Middle Class

Democrats keep attacking President Donald Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, as a tax cut for the rich. But the data show that the average family GAINED roughly $2,000 on their lower tax bill for this year.  Every Democrat in Congress voted no, even as they complained of a “middle-class affordability crisis.” Maybe that’s because $2,000 is peanuts to rich and famous limousine liberal Democrats.  But not for the rest of us.

The goal of the Trump tax cut was simple: strengthen the economy with lower tax rates and let working and retired Americans keep more of what they earn. The early evidence confirms this is exactly what has happened.  Initial IRS data shows that almost HALF of filers have already taken advantage of the bill’s middle‑income tax provisions.

Income taxes have become such an ingrained part of American life that many workers barely notice how much is snatched from their paychecks – payroll taxes, federal income taxes, state income taxes, etc. We see the net amount and forget the gross amount is what we actually earned. Because less is now taken out, the Trump tax cut functions like a pay raise.

So who is getting a pay raise from the One Big Beautiful Bill? Three major provisions were deliberately crafted to help working‑class and middle‑class Americans keep more of their hard‑earned dollars.

First, the law eliminated income tax on tipped wages, subject to certain caps. For millions of waiters, waitresses, bartenders, baristas, barbers, hairstylists, DoorDash drivers, tour guides, casino dealers, and counter staff at casual restaurants, this means a substantial share of their income is no longer taxed. In some of these occupations, tips make up more than half of total earnings, so the impact is enormous. These workers may lead rich and fulfilling lives, but none of them qualify as Trump’s “rich friends.”

Second, the bill eliminated federal income tax on overtime pay, again with income limits. This provision frees hourly workers from being taxed when they put in extra hours. Put differently, eliminating tax on overtime reduces the number of hours each day that hourly workers labor not for themselves or their families, but for the government. Given how many Americans are paid hourly, this provision overwhelmingly benefits people who are not wealthy.