My biggest fear of this plan is that it creates a new government revenue stream with the national sales tax. If the percentages across all three streams had an ironclad guarantee of 9% (could never be increased), then I would consider it but that is just not possible.
What to stop the Congress from right now raising tax rates 20-30-40%?
The same fear you express here about 9-9-9 applies to an even great extend to the existing tax code.
It is actually harder to raise taxes with 9-9-9 then it would under the existing system. Since everyone pays, everyone knows they will pay more for ANY tax hike. Currently Congress can hid tax hikes by playing with deductions and loopholes or by targeting the tax hike to certain income groups. That power to play games with the tax code goes away under 9-9-9
“My biggest fear of this plan is that it creates a new government revenue stream with the national sales tax”
He gets rid of one revenue stream (15.3% payroll taxes) which is hidden and replaces it with a revenue stream 9% which is visible.
The other 2 revenue streams (income/corporate) are already there.
Why aren’t you fearful of all the other revenue streams that the gov’t has right now? Isn’t one, highly visible, tax better than a dozen hidden ones?
I’m a lot less afraid of one tax that puts pressure on every American and that everyone can see than I am of the sneaky taxes that choke us in our sleep.
Cain did say that 999 must be accompanied by a 2/3 majority required in congress to increase taxes.
It is easier for congress+president to increase invisible percentage tax such as income tax brackets or social security percentage. Are you aware that social security percentage has been tweaked 23 times since inception?
OTOH, to give a close to home anecdote, my wife knows exactly the sales tax percentages in every town and mall nearby, but could not tell me what percentage we paid on federal income tax last year, the year before or previous 10 years.