Free Republic

Democrats on Tuesday proposed billions in tax increases on businesses and high earners to help bridge California's budget shortfall. The proposed hikes include rolling back the dependent child income tax credit expanded in the 1990s, creating two higher income tax brackets for the state's biggest earners and increasing corporate taxes. The long-awaited list of revenue proposals faces near certain defeat, however, as Republican lawmakers have repeatedly said they are unified in their opposition to any tax increases. Approving a budget and increasing taxes requires a two-thirds vote, which means GOP support is mandatory. "I guarantee you it will be a...

The Virginia General Assembly yesterday began its latest special session to deal with the state's transportation problems. Democratic Gov. Tim Kaine wants to raise $1 billion per year for transportation through an increase in the motor vehicle sales tax, higher registration fees and a 1-cent sales tax increase for purchases in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads on everything except food and medicine. Mr. Kaine's plan also includes creation of what looks like a huge boondoggle to benefit the politically well-connected. It is called a "Transportation Change Fund," and it would pay for mass transit and rail projects, telecommuting and ride-sharing,...

When the federal Liberals lose the next election and Stephane Dion is forced to resign, the words "Green Shift" will no doubt appear prominently in the first paragraph or two of his political obituary. As a cautionary tale, it will rank right up there with John Tory's disastrous religious school funding proposal in Ontario. Ironically, the legacy of this self-described green zealot will be to kill serious environmentalism in this country for years to come. That's too bad, because the concept of a carbon tax actually makes sense --even, dare I say, to conservatives. I am talking here about a...

OBAMA'S ATTACK ON THE ACHIEVERS To the surprise of absolutely nobody, Barack Obama launched several attacks on achievement yesterday, slamming John McCain's tax proposals. Obama absolutely cannot stand the idea of successful people being allowed to keep more of the money they earn. After all, as Obama would tell you, those people don't actually need that money, so it is perfectly OK for the government to seize that excess cash and use it for various vote-buying schemes. Obama likes to say that nobody earning less than $250,000 a year would have their taxes increased under his plan. Well, isn't that...

Yoko Wang, owner of Toshio's Teriyaki in Rainier Valley, is not too worried about a possible ban on Styrofoam clamshells in Seattle. She's confident that biodegradable containers to keep her broiled, boneless chicken hot will be available by the time the city mandates the switch — in July 2010. She was shocked, however, to hear the ban would extend to plastics, right down to each chili-sauce container and fork. "Everybody is going to have to use chopsticks," Wang said after her Monday lunch rush. "I can give lessons." Today, the City Council will hold a public hearing on Mayor Greg...

Why has Republicanism failed? Republicanism has failed and will fail because of single of idea which America under President Bush has become fixated upon. The new idea and hegemony of Bush and America is the realization of freedom. It has been American’s claim to an absolute idea predicated on the absolute strength of such an idea in the world for other regimes to become and emulate. Is not” You are either with us or against us” a favorite slogan of this moment in history?

U.S. lawmakers are touting a home-buyer tax credit in a high-profile housing bill before Congress, but critics say it may do little to help consumers amid the mortgage crisis. The tax credit would allow qualified home buyers to subtract the credit amount from their income taxes when they buy a home, but it requires them to pay it back over 15 years. It resembles an interest-free loan that must be repaid to the government.

Why shouldn't we have a rebate on the windfall taxes being collected by state and federal governments??

One reason people are unhappy with the way politics and governments operate is that people who run for office are known to “say one thing and do another.” Thus, we have the call for “change.” Candidates for high office make frequent use of that word. Even our House Republican Conference’s recently released slogan highlights that word. Yet, bringing about change is easier said than done. The American people are aware that government is broken and must be fixed. They will demand more than lip service as our problems become more severe. Change, then, cannot simply be a word. It must...

The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors has scheduled a closed-door session to tackle a $20 million debt that came to light earlier this week. The board added the issue to its Tuesday agenda after learning the county must reimburse South San Francisco biotech firm Genentech for a portion of its property taxes dating to 1994. The $20 million judgment by the San Mateo County Superior Court was punishment for a scheduling error in the county's assessment appeals process. The closed session is the first step as the county scrambles for ways to cushion the blow, which threatens to cut...

The Quorum Report July 2, 2008 4:52 PM Copyright July 2, 2008 by Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved SCHLOMACH: HOW ABOUT A MULLIGAN? -- WILL TEXANS SEE THE MARGINS TAX, PART DEAUX Economist Byron Schlomach may have moved on, but even from afar he has some thought about Texas tax contortions I don’t know how seriously to take Lt. Governor Dewhurst’s threat to revisit the margins tax. When I read about his suggestion though, it brought back a flood of memories - memories of lost opportunities and unheeded warnings. There are two reasons the margins tax is likely...

Senator John McCain plans to promise on Monday that he will balance the federal budget by the end of his first term by curbing wasteful spending and overhauling entitlement programs, including Social Security, his advisers told Politico. The vow to take on Social Security puts McCain in a political danger zone that thwarted President Bush after he named it the top domestic priority of his second term. McCain is making the pledge at the beginning of a week when both presidential candidates plan to devote their events to the economy, the top issue in poll after poll as voters struggle...

LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles County's mass transit agency this month will likely ask county supervisors to put a half-cent sales tax increase measure on November's ballot, a move aimed at raising tens of billions of dollars to build a Los Angeles subway extension and other projects. While a recent poll shows general voter support for the transportation tax hike, the five county supervisors, who are members of the 13-member Metro board, are not advocating the increase. And the whole thing could go up in smoke if a related bill by Assemblyman Mark Feuer doesn't make it past state lawmakers....

If you knew that a recent Zogby International survey found 59 percent of the respondents described themselves as "fiscally conservative and socially liberal," and if you were a head of a political party wanting to put together a winning platform, what would you do?The question is not all that tough, but both Republican and Democrat leaders have yet to get it right. The Republicans, after losing three straight, off-year special congressional elections, are in a panic about what to do to renew their "brand." The Democrats naively think they are in great shape, even though they only have an...

Governor Gilmore phased out 70 percent of the car tax during his term as Governor. The 4th and final car tax cut of the remaining 30 percent was supposed to happen under Mark Warner but he blocked it, claiming the state could not afford to finish the car tax cut -- just as he claimed the state had a budget mess when he raised taxes by $1.4 billion. After cutting the car tax by 70 percent so working families would have more of their money, Governor Gilmore left Mark Warner a balanced budget as required by law and more than...

If you've seen HBO's "The Wire," you know why those of us who live in Baltimore are often asked whether our city really is the hellhole it is portrayed to be on TV. Our answer is, well, yes. Baltimore deserves the Third-World profile it has developed because it has expanses of crumbling, crime-riddled neighborhoods populated by low-income renters, an absent middle class, and just a few enclaves of high-income gentry near the Inner Harbor or in suburbs. This wasn't what Baltimore looked like in the 1950s. Then it was a prosperous, blue-collar city. [Snip] Today, the city has a population...

Gas-tax increase only money on tableBy JIM NOLAN AND DAVID RESS RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH Published: July 4, 2008 It’s been called the “third rail” of the legislative debate over how to fund Virginia’s transportation solutions. Vote to increase the state’s gas tax, and you can start drafting your concession speech well before Election Day. Even Democratic Gov. Timothy M. Kaine steered away from the political pothole of incorporating a fuel tax increase into his $1 billion transportation proposal, calling fuel “a necessity of life” for Virginians. He also acknowledged the idea stood little chance of surviving the Republican-controlled House of Delegates....

<p>A DEFIANT Paul Hogan had a typically plain-spoken and blunt message for the Australian Taxation Office yesterday: "Come and get me, you miserable bastards."</p> <p>As the ATO enlisted the help of the Internal Revenue Service in the US to pursue the actor for allegedly undisclosed tax liabilities, a bemused Hogan insisted he had paid more than enough tax - a figure he estimated to be in excess of $100million - in Australia.</p>

The vision behind July 4th, Independence Day, is with us today Born in the struggle to throw off unfair taxes that sapped the lifeblood from our colonies, American patriots soon pledged their lives and fortunes to each other to create a new form of government that rejected the rule of kings. A new idea sprang forth that government should only exist to protect and advance the rights that are derived, not from any ruler but which all men and women are endowed with by our Creator. A new government was formed that risked everything to advance this idea that government...

The spectre of higher taxes is moving the economy in 2008 and probably in a big way. Take a look at the American balance sheet and you see carnage with real estate and stocks and so on. What's the one solid asset underreported when discussing American Savings Rates? The 401K deferred income plan. It was introduced back in 1987 and people have saved and been matched by their companies in that savings for over 20 years now. Folks aren't stupid. You can run the numbers and see you might be better off spending your stack now rather than waiting for...

You would think that this story is right out of science fiction. But the facts appear to be that the US Democrat-controlled Congress intends to destroy the Republican middle class with $11 per gallon gasoline.

President Bush recently signed the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Act of 2008, aka, the HEART bill. Hidden in the bill is new taxation on those who renounce their citizenship. The bill specifically calls for taxation on the net unrealized gain in their property, as if the property had been sold. Call it the "Hotel Calfornia" Tax, checkout any time you want, but a good chunk of your money can't leave. The first $600,000 in estimated net worth is exempt, then the tax kicks in at regular rates. Thus, this tax creates the potential for huge taxable phantom gains, with...

The nagging voice of doubt is trying to talk me out of writing this column: You want to call for more sales taxes in Illinois? The very week Cook County residents are reeling and seething over the latest hike? Yes, more sales taxes.

Just in time for Independence Day, the bible of the American left, The New York Times, continues to opine that the United States is a "nation in decline." Hoping to see a Democrat in the White House, the newspaper has been hammering home that theme on its editorial pages. The Times bases its claims on two primary situations: the negative view of America abroad and income inequality at home. So, let's take a look at the supposed "decline." Overseas, the world is largely a mess. Africa remains a chaotic cauldron of corruption, China continues its authoritarian rule, and there's no...

For those who like the politics of redistribution, Sen. Barack Obama is their man. The presumed Democratic presidential nominee's plan would soak the richest Americans and spread the wealth around. Economist Scott Hodge, president of the Tax Foundation, has looked at the Obama plan and found that it "would redistribute more than $131 billion per year from the top 1% of taxpayers to all other taxpayers." $131 billion. In one year. That's the value of Intel, bigger than Coca-Cola and just below the market caps of Cisco and ConocoPhillips. It's enough cash to fund the Education Department for almost two...

The Prince George's County Revenue Authority, its tax receipts sputtering as home prices plunge, has adopted a novel way to brake the slide. By cracking down on front lawns that resemble used-car lots and on trucks parked in residential areas, the authority reckons it can collect some of the $15 million in unpaid tickets and make neighborhoods more attractive to potential home buyers and prospective businesses. "A lot of the enforcement is for aesthetics because things are disorderly looking, but we also want to increase property values and make the community more livable," said Troy Thompson, director of parking operations...

IRS officials are asking people who plan on attending family get-togethers over the Fourth of July weekend to be on the lookout for relatives who received economic stimulus checks. "The July 4 holiday is a perfect opportunity to encourage family and friends to reach out to those who may not have heard about the stimulus payment," said Christopher Miller, IRS spokesman in Milwaukee. Miller said there are 77,000 disabled veterans and retired people in Wisconsin, including 4,242 in Dane County, who have not filed tax returns, a necessary step in getting a stimulus check. But many residents aren't required to...

THE HAGUE, 02/07/08 - Yesterday, on 1 July, a series of tax measures came into effect that will make the Dutch population's life more expensive. Additionally, they are no longer allowed to smoke in hotels, bars and restaurants. The cabinet introduced its new flying tax yesterday. For a flight of up to 2,500 kilometres, an extra 11.25 euros will have to be paid, and for longer flights, as much as 45 euros. Despite high fuel prices, the government also raised excise duties on diesel by 3 cents and on LPG by 1.5 cents a litre from yesterday. Smokers also have...

Casselberry, FL Eastmonte Civic Center 830 Magnolia Dr. Altamonte Springs, FL 32701 Monthly Meeting for Casselberry and surrounding areas is every second Tuesday at 7 p.m. till 9:00 p.m. We will meet this month at The Eastmonte Civic Center. There will be a presentation of the FairTax followed by a Q&A and a discussion of recent volunteer activities. For more information, please contact Larry Walters at 407-949-2959. Date: Tuesday, July 8, 2008 Time: 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM Repeat on the second Tuesday of the month until 07/20/2008 This event does not require an RSVP. Registered users can request event...

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Tuesday shot down a Republican attempt to pressure the chamber into supporting a tax package and Alternative Minimum Tax patch this month, saying the provisions must first be funded. Reid spokesman Jim Manley responded to a letter from Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and ranking Finance Committee member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who had written Reid to press for action on those ideas before Congress’s next recess in August. “Sen. Reid shares the desire to complete work on the tax extender/energy tax incentives bill before the August recess,” Manley said. “However, it is puzzling...

Sen. John McCain, the Republican presidential candidate, has released his tax returns for the past two years, including details about the money he donated to charitable causes. In 2007, the Arizona senator reported $405,409 in total income and contributed $105,467, or 26 percent of his total income, to charity. In 2006, Mr. McCain said he had $358,414 in total income and donated $64,695, or 18 percent of his total income, to charity. The tax returns were filed solely by Mr. McCain. His wife, Cindy McCain, an heir to a beer distribution company in Phoenix who has reported wealth of $100-million,...

"I don't think the governor's tax cut is too big -- it's just misplaced. Sixty percent of the benefits from his tax cuts go to the wealthiest 10% of Americans -- and that's not the kind of tax relief that Americans need.... Gov. Bush wants to spend the entire surplus on tax cuts. I don't believe the wealthiest 10% of Americans should get 60% of the tax breaks. I think the lowest 10% should get the breaks.... "I'm not giving tax cuts for the rich." -- Discussion with media, reported in "Bush, McCain Snip Over Tax Cut Plans," Los Angeles...

And make no mistake, taxes under a President Obama would be à la française. The top marginal tax rate on income – including federal, state and local income and payroll levies – could reach 60% for many self-employed New Yorkers and Californians. Not even France's taxes are that high now that President Nicolas Sarkozy has capped the total that high-earning Frenchmen like Mr. Ducasse can pay in income, social and wealth taxes at 50% of earnings.

On the eve of the 4th of July, 2008, Americans are arguably as angry about being taxed without representation as at any time since they declared their independence from Great Britain. At the moment, they are furious about having no say over what amounts to a “tax” levied in the form of extortionate fuel prices driven by the supply-manipulating OPEC oil cartel. As was true 232 years ago, we must channel that anger into action. This will require not just declaring independence from the Saudi-led oil monopoly, but taking the steps necessary to secure our freedom. OPEC is able to...

John McCain and his wife failed to pay house taxes and owe more than $225,000 on credit cards, it has been revealed. Newsweek, which discovered that Senator McCain and his wife Cindy, a beer heiress worth an estimated $100 million, owed $6,744.42 in delinquent property taxes on a California home, commented acidly: "When you're poor, it can be hard to pay the bills. When you're rich, it's hard to keep track of all the bills that need paying." After the magazine told the McCain campaign about the tax debt most of it was paid off immediately and an aide said...

Tax rates could double. Spending on education, research, health and even Social Security could be squeezed tighter than ever. And foreign governments could use powerful financial leverage, rather than military force, to impose their economic and political agendas on the United States. All because the U.S. national debt - which is being financed on a daily basis by the governments of China and a host of oil-exporting states, among others - has made this country far more vulnerable than its elected leaders let on, says David Walker, who recently finished a 10-year stint as U.S. comptroller general and head of...

Democrats are nothing if not ironic. Their presumptive predidential nominee has made "Yes, we can" the buzzwords of his campaign, but the message his party sends to Americans is, "No, you can't." Recent polls from Gallup, Opinion Dynamics, Rasmussen and Zogby are clear evidence that a majority of Americans support increased domestic oil drilling and refining, yet the Democrats in Congress continue to block every proposed bill which would allow it. Democrat "leaders" from from Nancy Pelosi to Harry Reid to Barack Obama and their supporters put their hands over their ears at the mere suggestion and repeat Talking Point...

As the GOP in Congress appears about to be taking an "every man for himself" strategy for the fall elections, Gallup has just given the Republicans another gift (Americans Oppose Income Redistribution to Fix Economy). The results of this poll show that if the GOP ever gets back to preaching and adhering to the simple message that they used to have -- one that they've previously ridden to victory on -- they'd be shoe-ins in 2008. Whether or not the Republicans have cleaned their own house enough to take advantage of something like this remains to be seen. The numbers...

A lot of people probably can't understand why someone would voluntarily give up American citizenship -- but if someone wanted to do that, they'd now incur financial penalties for it. Congress just passed a new law that will stop your capital -- or at least a good portion of it -- at the border, should you decide not to be a U.S. citizen anymore. Is it, perhaps, in preparation for the possibility that Americans might rebel at the debt and taxes incurred by their government by leaving for lower-tax locales? You probably didn't notice this little provision inserted into the...

Labour is no longer the party trusted to bring in the health reforms that are need to safeguard the NHS for future generations... Barely one in five people believe the Labour party will deliver a better health service over the next ten years... It comes on the day Gordon Brown is to publish Lord Darzi's package of reforms to overhaul the way the NHS is run. The Prime Minister hopes the comprehensive review will transform Labour's fortunes and restore the party's reputation as guardians of the NHS on its 60th anniversary. After years of above-inflation increases in health spending, most...

This year, about 12,000 Americans will be shot to death. It's a staggering figure, and even though lawmakers have continued to pass gun-control laws to try to bring the number down, they have not significantly reduced the murder rate. Indeed, for the last decade, guns have steadily remained the cause of about two-thirds of all homicides. Gun manufacturers insist that these deaths are not their fault, preferring to pin the blame on criminals and irresponsible dealers. They have fiercely resisted even minimal restrictions on sales and have simultaneously washed their hands of responsibility for this "collateral damage." On Thursday, the...

The decision of France’s top chef to forsake his nationality and become a Monégasque, as the inhabitants of Monaco are known, has fuelled bitterness among affluent Frenchmen about President Nicolas Sarkozy’s failure to abolish the country’s punitive wealth tax. Alain Ducasse, whose culinary empire includes 21 restaurants in eight countries, was the latest of several French celebrities and captains of industry to avoid paying the tax by going into exile. The exodus is an embarrassment to a president who had pledged to do away with France’s “down-with-the-rich” mentality. The defection of this global ambassador of French cuisine who has more...

When given a choice about how government should address the numerous economic difficulties facing today's consumer, Americans overwhelmingly -- by 84% to 13% -- prefer that the government focus on improving overall economic conditions and the jobs situation in the United States as opposed to taking steps to distribute wealth more evenly among Americans.

Senator Obama's tax plan is a dramatic redistribution of the nation's tax burden, according to a new Tax Foundation analysis. In Tax Foundation Fiscal Fact, No. 132, Tax Foundation president Scott Hodge uses revenue estimates from the Tax Policy Center to show that Obama's plan would greatly accelerate the decades-long trend toward a federal government that depends for tax revenue almost exclusively on a few high-income people. Hodge acknowledges that some Americans may cheer this dramatic dependence on the highest earners, but he says the shift should be part of a larger national discussion asking questions such as: What is...

Loganville, GA Dear FairTax supporters: Do you want to learn more about how you can help promote the FairTax in your community? How you can answer the objections of your friends, family, co-workers? Would you like to network with other FairTax supporters to share ideas? Then plan to join us for our first FairTax Workshop for 2008. This event is FREE. Saturday, July 12th, 9am - 1pm. Covenant Christian Academy 3425 Loganville Hwy (GA 20) Loganville, GA 30052 Click here for driving directionsWe have invited Congressman Linder and Senator Chambliss to join us to give updates about the progress of...

<p>Last week, Barack Obama revealed his plan to shore up Social Security's shaky finances by raising the income level on which the payroll tax is applied. Currently, incomes above $102,000 are exempt, with that threshold rising every year indexed to wage inflation. Mr. Obama would keep that limit in place, but then assess payroll taxes on incomes above $250,000, which his campaign claims would apply to only the richest 3% of Americans.</p>

With President Obama in office, the days of governments extracting a top marginal rate of 60% will return. Could bell bottoms be far behind? Remember how the press made George Bush’s tax rate cuts look so “huge” in 2001 and 2003? A March 10, 2001, New York Times article by reporters Frank Bruni and Richard W. Stevenson typified the approach. The trick was to talk about the (scary) $1.6 trillion impact of the “cuts” while minimizing attention to their time frame. At the linked article, the reporters waited until the ninth paragraph to tell us that it was a “$1.6...

Once known as the Mother of Presidents, Ohio is now getting poorer, older and dumber – and making all the wrong moves to reverse the situation. And that may actually be a plus for Barack Obama. His party is finding that lofty, vague promises of change combined with high-spending, high-tax, welfare state-ish policies are a political winner in the state. How else to explain why Gov. Ted Strickland's approval ratings are in the mid-50s or why Democrats may even win control of the state House for the first time in 14 years? But as a formula for economic revival, it...

The core of Obama's economic plan is (a) more government spending: $65 billion a year for universal health insurance, $15 billion a year on alternative energy, $20 billion to help homeowners avoid default, $60 billion to bolster the nation's infrastructure, $10 billion annually to give students college tuition in exchange for public service, and on and on; and (b) shifting the tax burden upward: ending the Bush tax cuts on families making more than $250,000 and raising payroll taxes on those same higher-income earners (the latter meant to bolster Social Security without cutting benefits or raising the retirement age). Middle-class...

From the National Republican Senatorial Committee. http://www.nrsc.org/multimedia/details.aspx?ID=81When there's a problem, Jeanne Shaheen goes back to her old standby -- raising taxes. Failed polices and more taxes are not the answer. They're the problem. More at http://www.TheShaheenRecord.com.