[xrp]

Democrats counter that only wealthy Americans have the wherewithal to boost their savings (emphasis added) and worry a Bush reform effort would weigh heavily on middle-income workers.

This is hilarious. Let's say I earn $50,000/year and fall into the 28% income tax bracket. So I obviously am middle class. I'd pay $14,000/year in income taxes (omitting Social Security/Medicare). Now, my yearly budget is $20,000 and if I paid 23% (FairTax) on that in consumption taxes, I'd pay $4600. How is that increasing my burden?

[Your Nightmare]

Now, my yearly budget is $20,000 and if I paid 23% (FairTax) on that in consumption taxes, I'd pay $4600. How is that increasing my burden?

Does your budget for $20,000 include taxes? Because if you bought stuff priced at $20,000 you'd pay $5,974 in taxes ($20,000 x 29.87%), not $4,600. The 23% comes from $5,974 being 23% of $25,974.

The rate in terms most people think of sales taxes is 29.87%.