Tax legislation speeding through Congress not only will increase the deficit and provide meager gains for most low- and middle-income groups, it may also open up huge loopholes for businesses to sidestep taxes, says Kent Smetters, Wharton professor of business economics and public policy, and faculty director of the Penn Wharton Budget Model (PWBM) . “ The additional growth we project is only about one-ninth of the growth that would be required for this tax plan to actually pay for itself.” And when the White House Council on Academic Advisors says that the proposed tax changes will raise yearly family income ,000- ,000 on average, Smetters calls such claims “political statements. No credible model produces that result.” In this Knowledge at Wharton interview, Smetters offers a sweeping analysis of the tax proposals’ key points and how they would affect business, consumers, and income distribution and wealth, based on PWBM’s simulator. “The big winners are going to be the tax lawyers,” Smetters notes.…