UPDATE on H.R. 25 (Fair Tax) from John Linder

Thank you for coming by my webpage to show your enthusiasm for the FairTax. This effort to abolish the IRS, save American jobs, and rescue the American economy can only happen with your and your neighbor's support, so please know how grateful I am for your interest.

Today I am writing with just a brief update about where the FairTax stands. These last two months have been as exciting as any that we have had with the FairTax, and you are a big part of it. I have always said that the FairTax will never win alone in Washington, D.C.; instead, the FairTax will win among Americans in living rooms and at kitchen tables across this country, and the American voter will then demand action in Washington, D.C.

In the last two months, the FairTax has put a book atop the New York Times Bestsellers list and generated unprecedented grassroots support across the nation. That grassroots support is now paying dividends in Washington, D.C. In the last 45 days we have added a record six new Congressmen and one new Senator as supporters and cosponsors of the H.R. 25/S. 25, the FairTax bill in Congress. Perhaps it was your phone call or letter to one of these offices that made the difference, so let me list the names of these new supporters below:

Senator Tom Coburn (Oklahoma) Congressman Henry Brown (South Carolina) Congressman Dan Burton (Indiana) Congressman John Carter (Texas) Congressman John (Jimmy) Duncan (Tennessee) Congressman Duncan Hunter (California) Congressman Tom Tancredo (Colorado)

As you can see, these members come from all parts of the country, and they have added their names to the FairTax not because I asked them to but rather because you and your neighbors-their constituents-asked them to. This is how the FairTax will come to pass in Congress.

As of today, the FairTax has a combined 46 Congressional cosponsors in the House and Senate-more cosponsors than any other fundamental tax reform bill-and with your help, I am certain that we will add even more before the year ends.

Let me say it again: only with your support have we achieved this much, and only with your continued enthusiasm will we ultimately succeed. Tell your family, tell your friends, tell your neighbors and tell your coworkers. Tell anyone who will listen that the American voter is running this country and that Washington will respond to the voter's demands. If your neighbor doesn't believe it, tell them this:

From mid-May of this year through the end of September-more than four months-not a single member of Congress added his or her name to the FairTax bill. Yet, in just the last 45 days, amid a flurry of constituent phone calls, letters and town hall meetings, seven Congressmen and Senators have asked that their names be added. Why? Because politicians will listen to you! Keep talking.

Thank you again for visiting my webpage, and feel free to forward this email to anyone who you believe will find it useful. Come back anytime to http://linder.house.gov or http://fairtaxnow.org, and, together, we will make tax reform a reality.

I have read quite a bit about both the "fair tax" and "flat tax". I used to favor the flat tax, but after a little study, I am now firmly in favor of "fair tax".

Major reasons for fair tax -

1. Privacy! Get IRS out of our personal business.
2. Simplicity! NO MORE STINKIN' TAX FORMS OR FILING!
3. Everybody pays. No loopholes for the rich or for special interest groups.

"It will elminate the same taxes which the fair tax eliminates"

Really ? Which "flat tax" plan are you talking about ? Can you provide a link to the plan ? What is the rate ? Is it truly flat -- ie, no deductions of any kind ?

I'm also really curious about which taxes this "flat tax" will eliminate.

"The most equitable tax is the flat income tax, with a 2/3 majority required to increase the rate. It will elminate the same taxes which the fair tax eliminates, and will substantially reduce the IRS head count."

Since you favor the Forbes Flat Tax, your statement above is incorrect.

The Forbes proposal doesn't replace the Social Security and Medicare tax. The FairTax does.

The Forbes proposal doesn't eliminate taxes on businesses. The FairTax does.

The Forbes proposal doesn't significantly reduce the costs businesses incur to comply with the tax code. The FairTax does.

It is the replacement of these two taxes (and virtual elimination of compliance costs) which would allow American producers to be more competitive in world markets.

The Forbes proposal would reduce Business income taxes from a MARGINAL rate of 35% down to 17% and it wouldn't remove the 7.65% of labor costs businesses pay into Social Security/Medicare. Since businesses average less than 2% of revenues paid out in Income Taxes now, that percentage would be reduced by maybe 0.5% of revenue. Their Payroll taxes average close to 3% and the Forbes proposal wouldn't reduce that at all. The net effect would be a very minor reduction in costs to American businesses, and certainly not enough to give them an incentive to build factories here rather than abroad.

Also, by eliminating all taxes from Capital Gains, Interest and Dividend income, the Forbes plan would leave the wealthiest, most conspicuous consumers paying zero taxes. Once the mobocracy gets wind of that, the Forbes Flat Tax is DOA. They will never buy the argument that the business already paid tax before distributing the interest and dividends.

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