Posted on 07/03/2002 10:42:55 AM PDT by gubamyster
No!!!!
I have never seen the income tax come up on any ballot. It would take a repeal of the 16th Amendment to eliminate the Income Tax, and I don't think ANY of our elected officials are going to do anything to allow that to happen.
The Sixteenth Amendment authorizes, but doesn't require, an income tax. Congress could repeal the income tax anytime it wants to.
People elected the officials. If People made the income tax an issue, it would be on the ballot. I think only the Libertarian Party is promising to remove this beast.
The Constitution, in Article I, Section 8, gives Congress the power "to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts, and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of the United States."
In Article I, Section 9, the original document made clear that "no Capitation, or other direct Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census of Enumeration herein before directed to be taken." It is moreover established that "No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State."
Since 1913, our Constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property have been abridged and diminished by the assumption of direct taxing authority on each of us by the federal government.
We will propose legislation to abolish the Internal Revenue Service, and will veto any authorization, appropriation, or continuing resolution which contains any funding whatsoever for that illicit and unconstitutional agency. We are opposed to the flat-rate tax proposals that are being promoted as an improvement to the current tax system. The Sixteenth Amendment does not provide authority for an unapportioned direct tax.
Moreover, it is our intention to replace entirely the current tax system of the U.S. government (including income taxes, Social Security taxes, estate taxes, and inheritance taxes).
To the degree that tariffs on foreign products are insufficient to cover the legitimate Constitutional costs of the federal government, we will offer an apportioned "state-rate tax" in which the responsibility for covering the cost of unmet obligations will be divided among the several states in accordance with their proportion of the total population of the United States, excluding the District of Columbia. Thus, if a state contains 10 percent of the nations citizens, it will be responsible for assuming payment of 10 percent of the annual deficit.
The effect of this "state-rate tax" will be to encourage politicians to argue for less, rather than more, federal spending, and less state spending as well.
We endorse ratification of the Liberty Amendment, which would repeal the Sixteenth Amendment.
*****
It does still happen, I am working on Joe Zarelli's 3rd Congressional District bid in Washington State. A true Conservative, even with the big R after his name.
And that's the rub! The Congress Critturs ain't about to pull the plug on the feed trough! Anyone who believes otherwise is dreaming!
Neo - 1. New; recent: Neolithic. 2. a. New and different: neoimpressionism. b. New and abnormal: neoplasm.
Correct, but the Libertarians haven't enough power to take over a single seat in Congress that I know of. The Dems and Repubs will do all they can to keep the Libertarians out of office. The feed trough will continue to be filled with OUR money and the Ds & Rs are smart enough to know that.
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