Free Republic

Are the rich really getting richer? That’s a pretty standard line from the Left, a lament usually cited in the course of calling for higher tax rates. Robert Reich is particularly fond of this mode of attack: A recent post of his was headlined, “For 70 years, the wealthy have grown wealthier.” Professor Reich probably doesn’t write his own headlines, but it’s a common enough sentiment for him, and his prose is rich with phrases such as “the super-rich got even wealthier this year.” He isn’t alone in employing this mode. Take this from an April 7 Salon article: “And...

This long attack on the unfairness of progressive taxation from the Hoover Institution by Kip Hagopian usefully embodies a lot of right-wing delusions about income inequality. It argues that a person's income is determined by three things: America’s free enterprise system provides an environment in which the substantial majority of its citizens can realize their fullest earnings potential. Within that environment, individual economic outcomes are the product of a combination of three elements: aptitude, work effort, and choice of occupation. Aptitude. For the purposes of this essay, aptitude is broadly defined as the capacity to produce, or to earn income....

....Seventy-eight percent of likely California voters support a 1 percent increase in the income tax rate for Californians earning more than $500,000 a year, according to the poll, which was conducted by Democratic pollster Ben Tulchin and sponsored by the California Federation of Teachers. .....The teachers union is looking to partner with other labor groups to put the tax before voters in November. Such a measure would need approval from two-thirds of voters. The measure is seen as a "sweetener" to lure more voters to the polls should there be another measure on the ballot in the fall asking voters...

As Brad Williams walked the halls of the California state capitol in Sacramento on a recent afternoon, he spotted a small crowd of protesters battling state spending cuts. They wore shiny white buttons that said "We Love Jobs!" and argued that looming budget reductions will hurt the Golden State's working class. Mr. Williams shook his head. "They're missing the real problem," he said. The working class may be taking a beating from spending cuts used to close a cavernous deficit, Mr. Williams said, but the root of California's woes is its reliance on taxing the wealthy. Nearly half of California's...

House, Senate Dems break from Obama's tax policy for wealthyBy Bernie Becker - 03/20/11 06:00 AM ET Democrats in both chambers of Congress are pushing for legislation that would raise taxes on millionaires, breaking from President Obama who has long endorsed tax increases for families making more than $250,000. The strategic shift comes as lawmakers on Capitol Hill are beginning to discuss tax reform, and are poised once again to engage in the debate over whether the Bush-era tax rates should be extended. In an interesting development, liberals are calling for taxes to be raised on people making more than...

So it turns out millionaires get money envy too. Apparently the benchmark for when the rich actually think of themselves as rich, is about $7.5 million, according to the results of a Fidelity Investments survey on the subject, says the NY Post. Over 1,000 households were surveyed that had an average of $3.5 million in investable assets. Less than half of those, approximately 42 % said they don't feel like they're rich, and would need about $7.5 million to make them feel: I'm wealthy. Apparently those that did say they think of themselves as moneyed, "were younger on average and...

Some activists want wealthy Jane Harman to pay for special election voteBy Sean J. Miller - 02/21/11 06:08 PM ET A grass-roots movement fueled by anger over the cost of a special election for Rep. Jane Harman’s (D-Calif.) seat has sprung up in the coastal towns surrounding Los Angeles. Harman announced Feb. 7 that she was stepping down as the representative for California’s 36th district to become head of the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars, a Washington-based research institution. She’s set to remain in the House until Feb. 28, according to her office. Her departure only two months into...

We keep hearing the argument that we have to tax the rich. We hear how the rich have all this wealth and that because of their great amounts of wealth; they can afford to pay more taxes. But here is the problem; we tax income, not wealth. Here is an example that will hopefully clarify the situation. We have two families. The first family has five million dollars in savings accounts in numerous banks earning two per cent interest and no other income. This gives them an income of one hundred thousand dollars a year. Living on their family estate...

Nearly 76,000 Iranian Jews moved to Israel since 1948 and Immigration Ministry officials and the Knesset committee for immigration are trying to find ways to encourage the remaining 25,000 to move to the Jewish State. One major obstacle is the comfortable position of many Iranian Jews, despite their children starting school every day with the chant “Death to Israel, Death to America.” Marking International Human Rights Day, the Knesset Committee on Immigration discussed the situation with Israelis from the Turkish and Iranian Jewish communities in Israel. “I ask Jews in Iran why they stay there, and they tell me they...

Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is reported to be "irked" that President Obama didn't take his advice and use the tax bill to "corner Republicans into defending millionaires and billionaires."  In fact, Schumer's not just irked -- he's "deeply disappointed and convinced Obama had missed a major opportunity."  You'll remember that Schumer's plan was to continue the Bush tax cuts for everyone except those earning more than $1 million a year. Presumably, Chuck is upset about income trends showing the income share of the very richest rising in recent years.  Here is data from the IRS showing that the top...

Arson suspected in 2 Cape Cod incidentsBy Stewart Bishop Globe Correspondent / December 13, 2010 State fire officials are investigating a connection between two separate incidents of arson in two Cape Cod towns, authorities said yesterday. In both instances, someone apparently left messages at the scene condemning wealthy people, officials said. State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan said evidence found at both locations has led investigators to believe they might be connected. “There is some commonality to both incidents,’’ Coan said. “There was offensive graffiti that was written and very visibly displayed at both sites.’’

Effort for Liberal Balance to G.O.P. Groups BeginsBy MICHAEL LUO Published: November 23, 2010 In what may prove a significant development for the 2012 elections, David Brock, a prominent Democratic political operative, says he has amassed $4 million in pledges over the last few weeks and is moving quickly to hire a staff to set up what he hopes will become a permanent liberal counterweight over the airwaves to the Republican-leaning outside groups that spent so heavily on this year’s midterm elections. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, a former Maryland lieutenant governor and the eldest of Robert F. Kennedy’s 11 children, has...

Stung by massive electoral losses in last week’s midterms, Barack Obama has attempted to shift to the center on one major issue facing Congress in its lame-duck session opening later this month — tax increases scheduled to hit at the first of the year. Republicans, however, pushed back almost immediately to the strategy Obama floated this weekend in attempting to “decouple” the higher bracket tax rates from the rest of the tax rates. Obama favors a permanent repeal of the tax hikes for middle- and working-class workers, but only wants a temporary extension of the top rates: President Obama said...

Once again, tax policy is playing a central role in the election campaigns across the country. While almost all politicians appear to favor the extension of tax cuts for low- and middle-income households, a political fight has erupted over the fate of the top income tax bracket rate and the tax rate on dividends and capital gains. A host of arguments has been heard--some sensible and some less so. One particularly troubling idea that has emerged is summed up by a recent statement by President Obama, who argued, "These [high-income taxpayers] are folks who are less likely to spend the...

It’s a very subtle ploy, that statement, ”already making more money than most will earn in a lifetime.” Does it make you feel good? Glad for those billionaires, and proud of their enterprenurial spirit? Or does it make you feel slightly envious that these young kids will make more than you’ll ever see in your life? Yeah, me too. The ongoing repetition (only slightly unpalatable in single instances) permeates society these days. It’s in the press, on television, online… all the time. Captialism is evil; tax the rich; make the rich pay their fair share; they’ll make more than you’ll...

The White House continued to push Sunday for Congress to let the Bush tax cuts expire for the wealthiest Americans, teeing up a lame-duck standoff over the issue in Washington once lawmakers return from the campaign trail. David Axelrod, the president's senior adviser, said Sunday that the Obama administration still wants the tax cuts extended for middle-class families making up to $250,000. "That would be stimulative, because people who need money in their pocket to spend and pay for the things that they need to live would have more money in their pocket," Axelrod said in an interview. But he...

Lincoln may support extending tax cuts for the wealthy in light of 'circumstances'By Darren Goode - 10/09/10 10:32 AM ET Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) Friday signaled she is open to extending Bush administration tax cuts beyond the middle-class incentives President Obama and congressional Democratic leaders are seeking. Lincoln – one of the most endangered Democratic incumbents in the Nov. 2 midterm election – said she may support extending tax cuts set to expire at the end of the year for those making as much as $1 million annually. "I don't think we should have to say that we're either going...

Here comes the Boehner’s genius: rich democrats talk class warfare only because they believe the Republicans are there to protect their success. If the Republicans give up and let the radical left President run wild without a check – all those rich democrats will have to walk the walk to IRS, not only talk the talk. House Republicans Leader (and soon to be Speaker) John Boehner called President Obama’s bluff and stated he will vote for extending only part of the Bush tax-cuts if the Democrats have no will to give tax-cuts for the wealthy. That sent shock-waves through the...

The Wealthy Left Needs to Buy Our Debt – NOW!!! If the Obama administration insists on promising exponential growth in entitlements, AND, If wealthy lefties are pledging to give their life savings to charity, The time is now – Buy our debt!!! Buy it from Obama and Buy it from China. Put your money where your mouth is. Do it for world peace! This means you... Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Larry Ellison, ...

Wealthy Americans aren't spending so freely anymore. And the rest of us are feeling the squeeze. The question is whether the rich will cut back so much as to tip the economy back into recession — or if they will spend at least enough to sustain the recovery. The answer may not be clear for months. But their cutbacks help explain why the rebound could be stalling. The economy grew at just a 2.4 percent rate in the April-June quarter, the government said Friday, much slower than the 3.7 percent rate for the first quarter. Economists say overall consumer spending...