Steve,
I don't think the wealthy and corporations are going to be too happy to bet their money on this horse, now that we all know that any dollar spent is going to accomplish nothing whatever. It'd be like buying Enron or Worldcom stock. The sound of scribbling you hear is K Street writing checks to beltway Democrats to make sure they vote their consciences...(a more productive use of their money, in their opinions).
The free ride for the wealthy and our corporations is over. It’s time for them to shoulder the sacrifice they have avoided for these last five years while our troops die overseas for Bush’s negligence.
Spot on! The $1 trillion dollars in Corporate Welfare doled-out each year would go a long way to paying for these wars of convenience and universal healthcare for Americans. A nice progressive tax system should take care of the rest. A top rate of 70% -and lovely deductions for investing in America, not offshore- should be about right.
Posted by phidipides at November 29, 2006 09:14 AMSteve, the Bush tax cuts expire in a few years. The tax hike is coming.
Phidip, we already have a progressive tax system. A large chunk of the population pays 0%. Even for folks making up to $80K, the rate can be as low as 15%.
Whatever party introduced even the concept of a 70% tax bracket would never win another election. So, that's not going to happen.
Posted by muckdog at November 29, 2006 10:46 AMGod for the rich ain't the god for the poor-Jayhawks
Posted by MN Lady Rugger at November 29, 2006 12:00 PM"...we already have a progressive tax system. A large chunk of the population pays 0%. Even for folks making up to $80K, the rate can be as low as 15%...."
Yo, muck! Careful you don't fall into the Republican't meme there. We have a progressive INCOME tax system.
But the vast majority (over 3/4) of Americans pay more payroll (FICA (Social Security)/Medicare) tax than income tax. And it's regressive--7.65% on the first dollar of wages and goes to ZERO after $97.5k in 2007. If anything, it's a reverse flat tax.
Steve's point is dead on, though. As I wrote my buddy Bart the other day....
As the lame-duck Congress considers the latest off-budget, supplemental spending request for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, Democrats should demand that W and his Republican’t Rubberstamps put up or shut up. Either Iraq and Afghanistan are important enough to pay for—right now—or they’re not. We shouldn’t borrow one more dime from China to pay for W and his Chickenhawks’ manhood transplant.
Either raise the taxes, cut the WEALTHfare, or some combination of the two for America’s best-off (the top 1% of earners starts at about $350k/year), or bring our fighting men and women home.
If their mission is as important as W says it is when an election approaches, it’s important enough for W to get it paid for!
Posted by bartcopfan at November 29, 2006 12:12 PMbartcopfan,
As you mentioned, Reagan's FICA/Medicare tax scam is nothing more than a back door tax system. The government is looting excess FICA revenue to fund deficit spending and corporate welfare. Since the government has no plans to pay the money back to the Social Security System, FICA taxes are a deceptive regressive flat tax system.
As Social Security Solvency is discussed, the people, the government and the corporate media fail to insist that we sunset using excess FICA revenue to fund deficit spending.
It is time for the people that advocated this war - Big Oil, Halliburton, The Military Industrial Complex, Bechtel, Neocons, The Flag Waving Kool Aid Drinkers (they support the war but don’t want to fight it or pay taxes to fund it – real patriotism?) etc. - pay up!!!! You wanted this war, Now Pay for it!!!!
Even for folks making up to $80K, the rate can be as low as 15%.
Can be? ROFLMAO! I see you're at a point where you don't pay taxes yet. Ask your parents what it'll be like when they lose you as a deduction. Or better yet, when you start making over minimum wage, tell me what it's like to pay close to 50% of each extra dollar into the tax scheme. You don't even mention the AMT. That is some scholarship there, son. Too damn cute!
Whatever party introduced even the concept of a 70% tax bracket would never win another election.
Yes they would. Especially when it drops the taxes on the working poor and middle class. It's a time for shared sacrifice. I'm sure a real Murican like you would agree. I also like the idea of 35% taxes on dividends. Nothing worse than wealth accruing without being taxed.
Posted by phidipides at November 29, 2006 03:15 PMPhidip, put both hands back on the keyboard. While I do hope Pelosi and Reid go public with your tax proposals on day 1, I don't think they're that stupid. Can you imagine what would happen to public and private pension systems when the underlying investments collapsed under such a confiscatory tax scheme? And people's IRAs? You're talking financial armageddon with your proposals, Phidip.
The AMT mostly affects those who make $200,000-400,000. If you're under or over, you don't pay the AMT. Recent article in Barrons (last weekend I believe) had a great article about it. You may want to read it. Ah, here it is.
Excerpt:
Needed: a Better Alternative
By EDWARD F. MCQUARRIE
IF YOU HAD TO PAY THE ALTERNATIVE MINIMUM TAX last year, you may think that you committed some terrible financial mistake or were the victim of cruel fate. And if you managed to avoid the AMT, you probably believe it's one of those problems that afflict only citizens in high-tax states.
Wrong, wrong and wrong. It's nothing you did or didn't do, has no relationship to your karma and is less and less a function of where you live. Simple math explains why most families of four earning $200,000 to $400,000 will have to fork over an AMT payment in 2006.
You may also have been told that the AMT is so fiendishly complicated that only a CPA can understand it. That's wrong, too. The AMT is actually much easier to calculate than it is to avoid. What's fiendish about it is that it targets mostly upper-middle-class Americans, particularly those with families, homes and investments.
snip
The best way for professionals with good jobs to escape the tax is to drive their annual income above the $500,000-$750,000 level (the exact point of escape varies by state). As a result, a tax originally designed to snare wealthy tax dodgers is now most easily escaped by CEOs, investment bankers, surgeons, trial lawyers and others whose salaries alone can exceed $500,000. It's the little people -- successful working couples -- who have to pay the alternative minimum tax.
***
There you go, Phidip.
George? George Who?
We're all Democratic supporters now.
Signed,
DW
I say, yes, look to Bush's base. Make all the registered Republicans back in the last two national elections send their sons and daughters over to Iraq!!! It doesn't matter that they may not have voted for the idiot-just being a member of that stupid party qualifies them to give up their flesh and blood!!! Because you know what? I didn't vote for those crooks who caused this so I am not going to send my kid!!! Let those Bush twins go over to fight rather than party in Venzuela-they'd look good in some army fatiques and boots!!!! Oh yeah, as far as paying for this nightmare!!!!! Let the rich pay for it-all of their boy's blunders they pay for now-because I'm sick and tired of paying for their mess in Iraq!!!!
Posted by cheryl at December 2, 2006 05:21 AM