Posted on 07/11/2009 9:59:13 AM PDT by FromLori
Despite a still-lagging U.S. economy and rising unemployment rate, House Democrats announced late yesterday that they will seek a massive increase in federal income taxes to help pay for the national health-care reform proposal that President Obama is urging Congress to enact this summer.
House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel (D.-N.Y.)revealed late Friday afternoon that House Democrats will seek to increase income taxes by $540 billion.
The move, which had been discussed earlier in the week by House Democrats, broke in an Associated Press story that was published at 4:14 PM Eastern Daylight time on Friday afternoon (or 8:14 PM Greenwich Mean Time). . “Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel of New York said the tax would raise $540 billion over 10 years” the initial AP story reported.
Releasing news late on a Friday afternoon is a traditional public relations tactic used by politicians seeking to limit the news coverage of an item they nonetheless need to release.
Subsequent AP stories and a report in the Washington Post cited Democratic sources as saying that the massive new tax increase would come in the form of a “surtax” on people filing taxes in the upper brackets of the income tax code.
The upper tax brackets are already set to increase after next year when the income-tax cuts signed into law by President Bush in 2001 expire. President Obama and the Obama Treasury Department have indicated they intend to let those tax cuts expire for the upper two income brackets—meaning any individual or small business earning more than $200,000.
The “surtax” the House Democrats are planning now would further increase the income tax rate for people and small businesses paying taxes in the top brackets.
“Rangel didn't describe details, but one official said the surtax would apply to individuals with adjusted gross incomes over $280,000 a year, and couples over $350,000,” the AP reported. “A senior House aide said the surtax would be 1 percent for the first group of high earners, those households making $350,000 or more. The levels for the other two groups, those above $500,000 and $1 million in annual income are still being determined, said the aide.”
On Saturday morning, the Washington Post published a report on its Web site about the planned tax increase, under the headline—“Democrats Agree on Tax Hike to Fund Health Care.”
“Beginning in 2011, the plan would target all income over $350,000 a year for families and $280,000 a year for individuals, Democratic sources said,” the Post reported. “The surtax would start at 1 percent, rise to around 1.5 percent for families earning more than $500,000, then step up again, to around 3 percent, for families earning more than $1 million, Democrats said.”
The Post did note that this tax increase would come on top of tax increases that the Democrats were already planning by allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire.
“The top federal tax rate currently stands at 35 percent, but Democrats have vowed to raise it to 39.6 percent next year, when cuts enacted during the Bush administration expire,” reported the Post. “Combined with other federal tax adjustments, the surtax could leave most taxpayers with annual incomes more than $350,000 facing top federal rates of at least 45 percent, said Robert Carroll, a senior fellow at the nonprofit Tax Foundation.”
The New York Times also posted a piece on the proposed tax increase on its Web site.
“An aide to the House speaker, Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, said she and other leaders were supportive of the idea, which they concluded would be their main way to pay for Mr. Obama’s top policy priority: expanding health insurance coverage to virtually all Americans and curtailing the steep rise in the cost of medical care while improving patient outcomes,” reported the Times.
The Times also observed that the planned tax hike was a sign of the sort of “mandate” Democrats believed they won in last November’s election.
“With the economy still hobbled and Republicans already sharpening their tax-and-spend attack line, the proposal is perhaps the clearest expression yet of the mandate that Democrats believe they won last November, when voters expanded Democratic majorities in Congress and sent Barack Obama to the White House,” said the Times.
In 2001, President Bush signed tax reform legislation that cut income tax rates across the board. People who were then paying a 15% federal income tax rate had their rate cut to 10%. The higher income tax rates of 39.6%, 36%, 31%, and 28% were cut to 35%, 33%, 28% and 25%. President Obama’s Treasury Department has indicated that the administration will seek to increase the current 33% rate to 36% and the current 35% rate to 39.6%.
Under Obama’s tax-increase plan, individuals making $200,000 or more would be subject to the new 36% rate. The income “surtax” House Democrats now plan would come on top of Obama’s tax increases.
Lord, please raise up decent GOP candidates who can boot out all the Dem lunatics who are up for reelection in 2010. Please help us!
If we don’t get a million people to our taxpayer march on Washington on September 12th, we deserve this assault we are under.
If this passes this will take a Toro to whatever “green shoots” the economcy might have. When FDR instituted the FCIA tax that caused the economy, which was experiencing a recovery from the Great Depression, to enter a deep recession that only World War II “fixed”. I believe one of the reasons the savings rate has increased dramatically is people are anticipating these tax increases and are already reducing consumption.
Instead of taxes on Wealthy Americans, why don’t they just tax Wealth?
Crickets....thought so. That Wealth tax would hit the superrich supporters of Zero and the Stalinists.
Releasing news late on a Friday afternoon is a traditional public relations tactic used by politicians seeking to limit the news coverage of an item they nonetheless need to release.
Subsequent AP stories and a report in the Washington Post cited Democratic sources as saying that the massive new tax increase would come in the form of a “surtax” on people filing taxes in the upper brackets of the income tax code.
The upper tax brackets are already set to increase after next year when the income-tax cuts signed into law by President Bush in 2001 expire. President Obama and the Obama Treasury Department have indicated they intend to let those tax cuts expire for the upper two income brackets—meaning any individual or small business earning more than $200,000.
The “surtax” the House Democrats are planning now would further increase the income tax rate for people and small businesses paying taxes in the top brackets.
This will KILL small businesses.
BTW, they are talking about a bail out bill for SMALL BUSINESSES! Is this nuts or what? Tax the hell out of them then use tax dollars to bail them out and have the GOVERNMENT CONTROL SMALL BUSINESSES THAT ACCEPT GOVERNMENT MONEY. Many banks wnat to RETURN the BAIL OUT MONEY but the GOVERNMENT will not accept it. This is so vile ......
Releasing news late on a Friday afternoon is a traditional public relations tactic used by politicians seeking to limit the news coverage of an item they nonetheless need to release.
Subsequent AP stories and a report in the Washington Post cited Democratic sources as saying that the massive new tax increase would come in the form of a “surtax” on people filing taxes in the upper brackets of the income tax code.
The upper tax brackets are already set to increase after next year when the income-tax cuts signed into law by President Bush in 2001 expire. President Obama and the Obama Treasury Department have indicated they intend to let those tax cuts expire for the upper two income brackets—meaning any individual or small business earning more than $200,000.
The “surtax” the House Democrats are planning now would further increase the income tax rate for people and small businesses paying taxes in the top brackets.
This will KILL small businesses.
BTW, they are talking about a bail out bill for SMALL BUSINESSES! Is this nuts or what? Tax the hell out of them then use tax dollars to bail them out and have the GOVERNMENT CONTROL SMALL BUSINESSES THAT ACCEPT GOVERNMENT MONEY. Many banks want to RETURN the BAIL OUT MONEY but the GOVERNMENT will not accept it. This is so vile ......
And what happens when these new higher tax rates change people’s behavior, and the result is less tax revenue than they expected????????
There’s a term to describe this type of thinking. These guys sit down with a computer spreadsheet, plug in a new number of a tax rate, do the math, and say, this new tax rate will raise $540 billion. But in the real world, things don’t work that way. People subjected to the higher rates will change the way they spend money and do business to avoid the higher rates when possible.
So, between the fact that these new taxes, if passed, will not raise the money they expect, PLUS, the fact that this health care plan will end up costing more than expected, as all government programs do, means endless deficits and higher expenditures for a lower quality of healthcare overall.
I was thinking of attending but there are two complimentary rallies. Recommendations as to which one I should attend?
But...but...but..they’re only gonig to raise taxes on the rich, right?
I think Baraq was honest when he told Joe the Plumber his intentions. Unfortunately few listened.
This is totally nuts.
Demoncrats are over playing their hand.
I’m going to be the one on Capitol Hill...As long as millions show up in Washington, DC itself, our point will be made.
Move over recession lets have a depression!
Do you truly expect the innovative, energetic and enterprising of us will sustain your folly?
Do you truly expect the minions and fools who voted for you to keep voting for you once the wealth has been spread around and pissed away on 40s, Newports, and lottery tickets?
No doubt when the ignorant and selfish masses get restless you will reintroduce the Roman Circus - this time, however, it will be filled with Conservatives AND Christians..
What happened to no taxes for 95 percent of the people?
Gone is that promise?
Obortion Obama lies again and again!!
With a 36% fed tax rate plus state an local taxes- anyone who makes $200K is now a sharecropper. With govt.
They get to keep about 50% of what they make, the govt graciously grants them the privilege of going to work everyday to support everyone.
We’ve got to start insisting that the same health care covers ALL AMERICANS, including all in the admistration and all elected officials. No gold-plated health coverage for Obama and Congress while we get rationing. Perhaps Sarah could ask why the “employees” (Obama, et al) get the cadillac coverage and the employers (the rest of the Americans) get the dregs.
Socialism sucks bookmark.
What the democrats are doing to our country and way of life
is not just a shame it’s a CRIME, and they need to be punished for it.
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