Tag Archives | pandering politicos

Who would pay for lower estate taxes on the super-rich? Working families.

By on November 5, 2012 in Internal Revenue Service, Mitt Romney, Politics

On the eve of the election, it seems like a good time to highlight one of the tax provisions that Mitt Romney says he would wholeheartedly support–one that would increase taxes on millions of working people.

Right now the estate tax applies only to estates worth more than $5 million ($10 million for married couples). Republicans in Congress want to keep these high levels instead of the still-generous $3.5 million/$7 million for couples that were in effect in 2009.

How many people would actually benefit from these highest-wealth tax breaks? The estates of about 7,000 individuals or families nationwide.

How would the Republicans pay for this break, which saves the wealthiest about $1.1 million apiece?

They would slash the child tax credit and the Earned Income Credit, which combined help more than 13 million working families. That’s right–they would increase taxes on 13 million families to pay for a tax break on 7,000 estates.

These numbers are stunning. In the swing state of Virginia, for example, 220 estates would get the seven-figure tax break. Yet 275,000 families, including a half-million children, would pay for it.

The New York Times has all the gory details here.

Vote.

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When a candidate says what he really thinks . . . that’s news

By on September 19, 2012 in idiot candidates, Mitt Romney, Politics, Tax Issues

“…who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it.”

Wow. Won’t spend a lot of time on this, because it’s only been the #1 story of the week. Absolutely chilling to hear the world view of a man who believes that 47% of us are freeloaders. If you make too little to have an income tax bill–but you’re still paying Social Security, Medicare and other taxes–Mitt’s not going to lose any sleep over you.

As The New York Times said today, “Mr. Romney has been trying to incite the anger of a small slice of the richest Americans who need no government assistance but get it anyway, against the working poor, older Americans, the disabled workers and veterans, and even a significant chunk of middle-class Americans.”

How amazing is it hearing what Romney says when he thinks only his friends are listening? Let’s just say I never thought I’d be linking in this blog to a political commentary by conservative favorite David Brooks.

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What to expect from the Ryan Administration

By on August 13, 2012 in Politics

Mitt Romney will only release one year of past tax returns and won’t give any specific budget proposals. But sooner or later, he had to pick a vice-presidential candidate.

So we can now look to Paul Ryan’s proposals as chairman of the House Budget Committee (Romney previously called a proposed Ryan budget “excellent work”) for a preview of how your taxes could change under a Romney-Ryan Administration. Here’s some of what Ryan has proposed:

–Giving the top 1 percent of income earners a tax break averaging more than $150,000, while on average raising the taxes of the bottom 20%, as The Washington Post reported.

–Ending Medicare by giving beneficiaries a fixed amount to go into the marketplace and try to purchase private health insurance. Over time, government spending on health care would drop by 50% and most elderly would pay more for health care (if they can get insurance) than would otherwise be the case. You don’t have to believe me about this–just check out the report from the well-regarded and nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

–Privatizing Social Security, with a plan so radical that even privatization fan George W. Bush spurned it, according to New York magazine.

–Cutting Pell Grants, job training benefits, and food stamps with a slash-and-burn campaign so severe that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops publicly criticized him.

I know–only one of the bullets above deal directly with taxes, while the other three deal with government spending on social programs. Remember: Whenever politicians talk about cutting spending on social programs, they are usually also talking about indirectly raising costs and reducing opportunities for millions of Americans.

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Pulitzer Prize for tax series from New York Times

By on April 19, 2012 in Creative, Deductions, Internal Revenue Service, Tax Policy

Is the tax code deep, dark, confusing and unfair? Sure it is. Can you get a good story out of it? How about a series of stories good enough to win a Pulitzer Prize?

new york times 150x150 Pulitzer Prize for tax series from New York TimesAll hail David Kocieniewski, who waded shoulder-deep into the U.S. tax system and came out with a stunning group of stories for The New York Times about how corporations and the wealthiest Americans are able to dramatically and legally slash their taxes. His series, “But Nobody Pays That”, has won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for explanatory journalism.

Here’s a link to a list of all the 2012 Pulitzer Prize winners (you can also access many of the winning pieces directly from the article). It’s a tour of the best of American journalism.

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Mitt Romney, through the funhouse mirror

By on March 4, 2012 in Elections, idiot candidates, Politics

Mitt Romney famously told a heckler on the campaign trail that corporations are people, too.

A fellow named Geoff Sugerman was paying attention.

Here’s his proposal: If corporations are people, why can’t people be corporations–with all the tax benefits of corporations

Geoff has a website, peoplearecorporations.org., where he also promotes his political action committee, People Are Corporations Too (PACPAC.)

Contributions are not tax-deductible. Not even if you’re a corporation.

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