Posted on 09/17/2011 5:15:07 PM PDT by Clairity
Populist gesture designed to appeal to his base
President Barack Obama, in a populist step designed to appeal to voters, will propose a "Buffett Tax" on people making more than $1 million a year as part of his deficit recommendations to Congress on Monday.
Such a proposal, among suggestions to a congressional supercommittee expected to seek up to $3 trillion in deficit savings over 10 years, would appeal to his Democratic base ahead of the 2012 election but likely not raise much in revenues.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Buffet tax???? I thought the same thing you did. It might work. lol
How about if Obama, Buffet, and all the democrats who owe back taxes, or have not been paying taxes just pay up. Let’s see if that makes a dent.
This is an act of political desperation. He’s got nothing left except to play the class warfare card to try and get disaffected lefties back into his corner.
James Carville recently described the adminstration as the “crazy train”. The wheels are coming off and its about to derail.
Buffett calling for a millionaire’s tax is like the average American calling for a tax on paperboys.
He is calling it “taxing millionaires” but now it turns out he is taxing anyone who makes over $200,000/year and before it’s over he will be taxing anyone who works and makes money.
Article from Forbes:
Obama’s Attempts To Tax The Rich
http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertlenzner/2011/09/17/obamas-attempts-to-tax-the-rich/
“Obama wants to raise taxes on Americans earning more than $200,000 by limiting their deductions on charitable gifts, and by reducing the amount of tax-free interest on municipal bonds they can earn without paying any tax.
The goal is to raise an additional $400 billion in taxes the next decade by reducing the level of deduction from taxes the income group above $200,000 will be allowed. This attempt is bound to be opposed by non-profit organizations everywhere who are dependent more and more to private contributions to keep their doors open and serve the public”
I think the message is — give your money to the government, not to charities and the government will decide how to distribute it.
He is calling it “taxing millionaires” but now it turns out he is taxing anyone who makes over $200,000/year and before it’s over he will be taxing anyone who works and makes money.
Article from Forbes:
Obama’s Attempts To Tax The Rich
http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertlenzner/2011/09/17/obamas-attempts-to-tax-the-rich/
“Obama wants to raise taxes on Americans earning more than $200,000 by limiting their deductions on charitable gifts, and by reducing the amount of tax-free interest on municipal bonds they can earn without paying any tax.
The goal is to raise an additional $400 billion in taxes the next decade by reducing the level of deduction from taxes the income group above $200,000 will be allowed. This attempt is bound to be opposed by non-profit organizations everywhere who are dependent more and more to private contributions to keep their doors open and serve the public”
I think the message is — give your money to the government, not to charities and the government will decide how to distribute it.
I can’t wait for the huge presser that will feature all of the DC fatcats lining up to write BIG Checks to the teasury We can start with the Clintons, the Kerry’s and the Obamalama’s. The list goes on and on.
“They can move out of the state, out of the country and then they will pay NO taxes to the US.”
FYI, as long as they are still citizens of the USA, the IRS will hound them across the planet for their income taxes. If they renounce US citizenship, then the IRS can still come after them for TEN YEARS. If they are worth more than some amount ($10M, I think) at the time they renounce, the IRS will treat them as if they DIED and charge the 55% estate tax immediately, then still hound them for the ten years for taxes on any new income.
It is practically slavery — the IRS really does think it is all THEIR money and we have only temporary control of it. As important as flattening tax rates is, wiping out these kinds of laws is even more important. Think of the wasted effort involved in an entire industry devoted to minimizing tax burdens with trusts, foundations, corporate shells, money-losing tax shelters, etc. All that would go away with a flat tax that specifically outlawed the exclusion, exemption, discounting of any income. Counting the 47% of people who pay no federal income tax, and all the corporate income taxes paid, the total federal income tax revenue is less than 10% of all personal income. Meaning we could eliminate the corporate income tax entirely, tax that income when it reaches shareholders as regular income, and the flat rate would only need to be 10% to raise the same revenue. All this demagoguery to “Tax the Rich” is really so a majority can pay less than 10%.
You know and i know, the rich will always find a way around it and will make it back by cutting jobs and lowering wages, so who wins in the end. Not the middle class. There is always accounting ways around it.
Obama is basically cutting his throat here, they will go after him.
I think the “Buffet Rule” is that HIS company doesn’t have to pay the BILLION DOLLARS it owes in TAXES!!! HYPOCRITE!! He’s an “Aw Shucks” hypocrite!!
The NEW “Uncle Sam” poster will not be “ I WANT YOU”....it will be “ I WANT YOUR MONEY”!
So all you fatcat Dems that hoisted Obama up in 2008, i hope your wallets are ready to be pickpocketed. Watch them squeal like pigs. Obama never learns, you’ll only have donor support until you start reaching into their wallet. I suspect he may have just gone that step too far. However i suspect this is designed to paint GOP as protecters of the wealthy as this wont get past the house. So its a ploy and should be called out as such.
Someone needs to tell Obama how things work, you dont write finance and tax bills, the house does that.
He’s walking a tightrope.....he’ll only fall if the media lets him.
and he will fall because there is an awful lot of those commentators out there making way over a million. All those Dem big mouths on TV might suddenly find a mouth.
we’ll know the TAX CHEATS in the media....they’ll be the ones not dissing Bammy.
....I think Obama first needs to collect the taxes that Berkshire-Hathaway already owes before he starts talking new taxes....
Populist my ass. Marxist to the core.
Faux warefare against the rich.
Like faux “we must tighten our belts” policy.
Obama: the perfect President for Twitter. Ya still have 100 characters to use after he spouts his dogma.
Outright confiscation of all current income of anyone making over $200,000 would net about enough to cover the deficit.
However, methinks a 100% tax won’t get far.
Realistic outer limit SWAG indicates the most we could squeeze out of “the rich” is about $200B, leaving some $1300B shortfall. Remember, Bill Gates is worth - relative to the deficit - a paltry $50B. And Steve Jobs’ salary from Apple is $0.000000001 ... Which raises the question re: many “rich” of what to tax?
Some rough numbers...
Obligations: $140000B
Debt: $14000B
Deficit: $1400B
“The rich” taxable income: $1400B
“The rich” income taxes: $400B
“Everyone else” income taxes: $600B
“Bottom 50%” taxpayers’ income taxes: $28B
“Half the population” income taxes: $0
The difference is that at a 10% flat rate on the “rich” it wouldn’t be worth their while to use the same tactics that a 35%+ marginal tax rate encourages. Same for corporations — that is just double taxation, 15% or more on individuals when they receive dividends plus another 35% rate at the corporate level. If the individual rate was only 10% and the corporate rate was 0%, corporations would flock to the USA and reinvest their profits here rather than abroad as they do now.
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