Tax Reform Promises Treats, Delivers Tricks[Ron Paul]

House.gov ^ | 04 Nov 2007 | Ron Paul

[BGHater]

Representative Charles Rangel’s recently announced plan to address the impending Alternative Minimum Tax’s application to middle-class Americans demonstrates limited economic understanding.

The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) began in the late 1960's because 155 wealthy taxpayers had become savvy enough with loopholes that they managed to avoid income taxes altogether. Very few Americans avoided taxes completely this way, nonetheless, policy was enacted that now threatens 25 million Americans.

Rangel's plan boasts loudly about repealing the AMT, but under the Democrats’ pay-as-you-go rules, actual tax cuts are not allowed. Congress must replace any tax revenue reduction with an increase somewhere else, and of course, there are no rules preventing tax hikes. Thus, a new 4% surtax on incomes over $150,000 for singles and $200,000 for couples is proposed to "pay for" the estimated lost revenue. This simultaneously raises $36 billion MORE than simply leaving the AMT alone, and creates a huge new marriage penalty tax. It won't be long before $150,000 is an average income, and middle class taxpayers will again face the situation we see coming today from inflation and the AMT. Overall, the Rangel tax plan is estimated to increase taxes by $3.5 trillion over the next 10 years.

With the leadership in Congress calling for this massive tax hike, spending levels promising to absorb all that and then some (thanks to our ambitiously misguided foreign policy), as well as the Federal Reserve's again cheapening the dollar, American taxpayers are wondering where their purchasing power went. We are working harder than ever before, as our standard of living falls.

The founding fathers never saw taxation as a method to direct social behavior or enforce equality. Equality to them was equality under the law, not equality of outcome, or income. It was not the founding fathers' job to manage the economy, or make American businesses competitive. That was up to the free market and American businesses. The founders sought to provide only protection of property and civil liberties such that job creation could happen naturally and peacefully in a stable, prosperous environment. They never sought to take from the rich to give to the poor, or rob Peter to pay Paul. But today, the top 5% of earners in this country pay over half of all income taxes collected, but only bring in a third of the income. One third of Americans pay nothing or receive subsidies from government.

Tax policy should not be based on the premise that government owns you and allows you to keep some arbitrary amount of your labor. Thus, the AMT should be repealed. The estate tax should be repealed. Capital gains taxes should be repealed. The income tax should be repealed. We don’t need to overhaul or adjust tax policy, we need to scrap the whole thing and start over.

But this message is not getting through to the leadership of Congress. Congress has ensnared itself in rules so that the only changes in tax policy allowed are increases, while the administration is obsessed with spending, especially spending us into oblivion by spreading this dead-end war when we should be coming home.

If Washington can only do wrong, then let’s hope for gridlock, until a more sensible Congress is in office. Sometimes a do-nothing Congress is a lot better than the alternative.

[jmyrlefuller]

Even a broken clock is right twice a day...

[traviskicks]

"The founding fathers never saw taxation as a method to direct social behavior or enforce equality. Equality to them was equality under the law, not equality of outcome, or income."



Libertarian ping! To be added or removed from my ping list freepmail me or post a message here.

[traviskicks]

ping

[George W. Bush]

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He's got a sharp scalpel and he's ready to make some cuts! Bravo.

[SubGeniusX]

If Washington can only do wrong, then let’s hope for gridlock, until a more sensible Congress is in office. Sometimes a do-nothing Congress is a lot better than the alternative.

Amen

QFT

[t_skoz]

BTTT for reductions in spending, reductions in regulation, reductions in taxation, and BTTT for Dr. Paul!

[Oberon]

BTT for BTP!

(that's Boston Tea Party.)

[George W. Bush]

You know, that really is a fiery little speech. Good stuff. He should use some of that in the next debate.

[Bokababe]

"The founding fathers never saw taxation as a method to direct social behavior or enforce equality. Equality to them was equality under the law, not equality of outcome, or income."

"You know, that really is a fiery little speech. Good stuff. He should use some of that in the next debate."

Agreed. That's the best quote that I have heard in a long time!

[rineaux]

2nd to the best quote in a long time.

[M203M4]

BTTT

RED MEAT!

[Bokababe]

"2nd to the best quote in a long time."

OK, I give up. What do you think is the best one?

[rineaux]

Maybe I should have wrote ditto to the best quote in a long time.

Another good one was, “if it doesn’t fit, you must acquit. LOL

[rob777]

"Even a broken clock is right twice a day..."


Aside from his naivety on the threat posed by Islamic Jihad-ism, he is right of as lot of issues.

[Bokababe]

"Aside from his naivety on the threat posed by Islamic Jihad-ism, he is right of as lot of issues."

Actually, I think that both the Libs and Bush are the ones who are really "naive" (or "crazy", or "corrupt", take your pick) -- thinking that "open borders", enforcing State Department Arabist policies internationally and allowing massive Islamic immigration to the US -- is "good for America". Those are the truly insane ideas.

What is ridiculously scary is when policies of the incumbent and mainstream party hopefuls are actually more "radical", and "out there" than those of marginal candidates, like Ron Paul. When the mainstream politicians are insane, and the supposed "fringe" makes sense, you have to know that America has been off-course on many of these issues for a very long time!

[M203M4]

I agree - I only really have two strikes against him.

1. His stance on Islamofascism (not that I agree with the Wilsonians either)

2. His support of a gold standard (not that the current state of the money supply, nor its controls, are satisfactory)

Plus some minor quibbles on some other issues, and general irritation with things like him voluntarily being within 20 feet of truthers, etc. Though, I submit that his stance on the WoT is not nearly as toxic as it is made out to be (not to say it isn’t truly toxic) by some, but Ron Paul’s choice of words has a lot to do with that...it is altogether maddening. I really would like to be able to, in good conscience, support him.

[KDD]

Vintage Paul.

[George W. Bush]

1. His stance on Islamofascism (not that I agree with the Wilsonians either)

Many of us don't agree with him entirely or his prescription for Iraq. Personally, I think we destabilized it and that, at the very least, we have to protect it from the Saudis, the Iranians and especially the Turks. There's too much oil there to leave the Iraqi national treasure undefended. It belongs to the Iraqi people until such time as they have a government with the wisdom to privatize it.

2. His support of a gold standard (not that the current state of the money supply, nor its controls, are satisfactory)

Ron Paul advocates offering an alternative currency in gold and other precious or rare metals or compounds. This would not be a complete and immediate transition. It would be something like $20-$50 billion at a time being withdrawn as fiat money and re-issued as hard currency. Ron Paul knows that we have never had a completely gold-backed currency in our history. His real point is to hedge against the deflation of savings and investments and discourage irresponsible lending practices which lead to bank bailouts by the Fed. Your money is now worth about half what it was a few years back because of these policies. The American dollar is now worth less than the Canadian dollar. And gold is consequently worth over $800 p/oz and smart traders are converting their holdings to foreign currencies and the Chinese have announced they're going to stop buying our debt in favor of better currencies.

Anyway, I thought I would address your concerns a bit. I'm not sure you can find that many RP supporters who agree with him 100%. But then, look at the other candidates and ask which one can get 100% agreement from their supporters either. None of them.

Vote for conscience and principle if you're in an early state. If you're in a late state (like me) and Ron Paul clearly cannot win the nomination, then vote for Fred or Mitt (or even McCain) in order to stop Rudi.