Posted on 06/15/2009 8:19:49 AM PDT by Man50D
COLUMBIA — According to rally organizers, about 4,760 people attended the Midwest FairTax rally Saturday afternoon to speak in favor of the tax plan that would essentially replace the federal income tax with a national sales tax.
The rally was held from 8 a.m to 4 p.m. at the Boone County Fairgrounds. The director for the consumption tax movement in the 9th Congressional District, Colin Malaker, has been busy with not only renting the fairgrounds, but also paying for the travel costs of flying in Georgia State Rep. Tom Graves, R-Ranger, and *Samuel J. Wurzelbacher, better known as "Joe the Plumber."
As he was preparing to speak, Wurzelbacher fielded questions from reporters in the VIP tent. “I’m not big on special treatment. I’d rather stay in a Motel 6,” he said. “If I ever did get an ego, I have a few uncles who would kick my ass.”
Although Wurzelbacher didn’t give specifics about why he supports the consumption tax, he believes it’s the right thing to do, citing how the consumption tax was part of the early American tax system. “Once you understand 'fair tax,' it’s the only thing that makes sense.”
The morning speakers for the event included organizations from a wide spectrum of issues, from Tea Party organizers to immigration.
Occasionally political jokes lightened up the crowd. One ongoing theme was President Barack Obama’s birth certificate verification. The rally however, was not a partisan function, organizers said, and a wide variety of people are part of the movement.
Early in the rally, master of ceremonies Jeff Parnell said the type of people drawn to the consumption tax issue come from a relatively diverse background.
“The people here are probably socially conservative as a group, but we have people on both sides of the political spectrum,” Parnell said.
Bob Ballard, one of the main organizers of Kansas City’s Tea Party, said "Tea Partiers" and consumption tax advocates share a common belief in fiscal responsibility and less government control.
“When we talk about government, we think that entails all the taxes and irresponsibility in spending those tax revenues,” Ballard said. “We want reformation of the tax code, which in our view, is so messed up.”
One notable speaker in the morning was Thomas Tabback, who, along with Wurzelbacher, wrote the book “Joe the Plumber: Fighting for the American Dream,” which was available for sale outside the speech hall for $10.
Tabback’s speech had many themes drawing from the American Revolution. He received applause from the growing crowd as more people filed in to listen.
“There’s dark clouds hovering over the country right now. Are we the people ready to rise up and fight for our country?” Tabback said to the crowd. “They have stolen the American dream. The last election was the nail in the coffin.”
Ballard said that although much blame is given to the government and representatives, the fair tax movement isn’t about blaming any particular person. Instead, it’s about reforming the entire system and the expensive programs the federal government wants to enact.
Another speaker, Angelo Miño, talked about how the immigration issue can be affected by the consumption tax.
“The fees and penalties one has to pay for immigration stops some people from pursuing the legal route,” Miño said. As he walked on stage to give his speech, Miño proudly boasted that “although I was born in Ecuador, I’m made in America.”
Evan Bush contributed to this report.
Boortz must be in heaven.
Personally, I think a flat tax gives everyone an equal stake in the success of the country...just an opinion...nothing motivates like skin in the game...and it might make us all pay more attention...
Thanks to O’Bummer, the ‘fairtax’ gets renamed to the ‘FatChance Tax” and would need to be around 57% give or take a bit.
Too bad all this ‘positive energy’ is being wasted on a fools errand.
It's a tax on everything tax, everything including the parts auto manufacturers buy to build cars, the pipes a plumber buys to fix your plumbing etc etc. Then "fair tax" is again charged on the pipes and services he provided you, and on the car the auto dealer sells you. Fair tax is a tax that multiplies the cost of everything as it passes from hand to hand.
Plus it will lead to more regulations, such as registering items like your TV and appliances to stop the smuggling of fairtax free goods, or else you can't plug them in, etc.
My question to flat taxers has always been, how does a consumption tax take any skin out of the game? Is there really anyone in this country who does not consume anything? The difference is I can choose how much I consume. flat taxes still penalize based on income. We need to remove the tax from any income. It will always cost more the more you make. Fair tax will encourage more careful spending by rich and poor alike, discourage the mindless purchasing/consumption that got us to this point, and will incentivize government to encourage good economic policy, as if people start losing jobs and stop spending, their income source will be affected. It will also ensure that even those in non recognized, under the table industries (prostitution, drug dealing, gambling, mafia, and POLITICIANS) will still pay when they buy, like the rest of us. All income taxes should be abolished. It ensures those who use the most services do not pay for them, and those who do not use services pay for them.
No, the fair tax is not a tax on everything. It does not tax parts used in auto manufacture - or any manufacture.
It is a tax on retail consumption. It has zero business taxes... which, as you know, end up in higher prices, lower wages, or reduced ROI... like today’s system or a flat income tax.
With you on the Flat Tax!
Wrong. You're not describing the FairTax. You're describing a VAT, or value-added, tax, which imposes a tax at every level of production, and which virtually no one in the tax reform movement supports. The FairTax is a RETAIL tax, imposed once at the cash register.
FReepers value truthfulness, and your post is not.
I say everyone, rich or poor should pay a set tax, say $500 a year. That is a fair flat tax. And that is in line with how tax should be collected in the bible. ( a shekel from each and every man)
The Lord was not a socialist/communist like so many "Christians" like to think. He knew that a person cannot give to the needy what he doesn't have to give. Prosperity promotes generosity and goodwill, while those who make only what they need are selfish.
Flat income tax retains business taxes - you know, the ones we pay for in higher prices, lower wages, or reduced ROI. IE hidden taxes.
Oh yeah, the flat income tax retains payroll taxes in addition to income taxes - it retains payroll taxes for employee AND employer.
The nrst is a flat tax on spending, not income.
If true, that would still not be a legitimate argument against the FairTax. It would be an argument against excessive government spending. All the FairTax would be doing is making what is now hidden visible.
Where are you getting this information?
“My question to flat taxers has always been, how does a consumption tax take any skin out of the game? Is there really anyone in this country who does not consume anything?”
A lot of self-sustained folks who are green, off the grid, growing their own, etc. (which I have ABSOLUTELY nothing against) but who also drive on the roads, use public utilities, etc...for a quick example...
“It will always cost more the more you make.”
But not as a percentage, which is all that counts. Your ten percent and mine are both ten percent, no matter how much we make.
Who says? Certainly not the government. Since it does not exist, don't go assuming what "exemptions" the government will make.
A till exists at every level of sales, not just the final sale of product assembled from a variety of parts, which were purchased from another.
A 'fair tax' that exempts manufacturers from paying Fairfax on the goods it needs suddenly isn't such a simple concept that Fairfax fans like to make it sound. All of a sudden this list of exemptions grows, and so does the need for the IRS to manage taxes.
Only daydreamers would think the government would scrap the existing tax system, and collect LESS tax through a "fairtax". They would only do that if they would benefit from collecting MORE. Then there is the state, which would also have to implement a fairtax of it's own, along with it's own list of exemptions.
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