Biden whispers he will VETO GOP tax bills

Whispering Joe made a return Thursday, as President Joe Biden leaned into the microphone and pledged to reject House Republicans' tax legislation, should the bills pass.

'Let me be very clear, if any of these bills make it to my desk: I will veto them,' Biden said in hushed tones. 

The president was giving an update on the economy Thursday morning and slammed the new GOP House majority for passing a bill Monday night that would roll back $72 billion to bolster the ranks of the IRS, which Republicans said was for the hiring of '87,000 agents.'  

'Like many Americans I was disappointed that the very first bill that Republicans in the House of Representatives passed would help wealthy people and big corporations cheat on their taxes at the expense of ordinary middle-class taxpayers,' he said. 

He then ridiculed the GOP's other ideas - passing a 'national sales tax' and eliminating the IRS.

'A national sales tax. That's a great idea. It would raise taxes on the middle class by taxing thousands of everyday items from groceries to gas. While cutting taxes for the wealthiest Americans,' Biden said. 

'Go home and tell your moms. They're going to be real excited about that,' he told reporters in the room. 

Whispering Joe made a return Thursday, as President Joe Biden leaned into the microphone and pledged to veto House Republicans' tax legislation, should the bills make it to his desk

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy promised members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus that there would be a floor vote on the 'Fair Tax Act,' which removes the national income tax, replaces it with consumption taxes and abolishes the IRS

The president also said Republicans wanted to 'totally eliminate the IRS.' 

'Feels good,' he said, sarcastically. 

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy had pledged for months that the first bill a House Republican majority would pass would roll back IRS funding that was part of the Inflation Reduction Act.

Democrats offset some of the spending in the bill on climate initiatives and healthcare with shoring up the IRS, so agents could hunt down tax cheats. 

Republicans latched on to a Treasury Department figure that said the $80 billion in funding over 10 years could hire 87,000 IRS agents. 

During last week's drama over the speakership, McCarthy also promised the conservative House Freedom Caucus that there would be floor votes on Georgia Republican Rep. Buddy Carter's 'Fair Tax Act,' which removes the national income tax, replaces it with consumption taxes and abolishes the IRS. 

'Instead of adding 87,000 new agents to weaponize the IRS against small business owners and middle America, this bill will eliminate the need for the department entirely by simplifying the tax code with provisions that work for the American people and encourage growth and innovation,' Carter said in a statement to Fox News. 

Even if the 'Fair Tax Act' passes the House, the Democrats hold a majority in the Senate where the bill will die.  

During his Thursday remarks, Biden said he called McCarthy to congratulate him after he was elected speaker after 15 votes in the early hours of Saturday. 

'I'm ready to work with Republicans, but not on this kind of stuff,' the president offered. 

Biden's economic remarks were overshadowed by the White House releasing a statement, moments before he stood onstage in the South Court Auditorium, saying that the second batch of classified documents were found in his garage and an adjacent room in Wilmington, Delaware.