Ted Cruz: 'Abolish the IRS'

(Image credit: Andrew Burton/Getty Images)

The annual Conservative Political Action Conference got underway Thursday, which means you can expect to hear a slew of vocal denouncements of the run-amok federal government over the next few days. To wit, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) got the party going by declaring, "We need to abolish the IRS."

In its place, Cruz advocated a flat tax system so everyone could file their taxes "on a postcard." It's an idea he and others have floated before; Steve Forbes literally wrote the book on it almost a decade ago. Yet the idea has never really gained traction with the American public, and even some on the right think it's a well-intentioned, though deeply flawed, plan.

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Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.