Posted on 08/10/2004 7:08:18 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
NICEVILLE, Fla. (Reuters) - President Bush (news - web sites) said on Tuesday that abolishing the U.S. income tax system and replacing it with a national sales tax was an idea worth considering.
"It's an interesting idea," Bush told an "Ask President Bush" campaign forum here. "You know, I'm not exactly sure how big the national sales tax is going to have to be, but it's the kind of interesting idea that we ought to explore seriously."
Republican economists who speak regularly to the White House have said that the Bush campaign has been mulling the idea of an overhaul of the tax code as part of an agenda for a second term should Bush win reelection.
Some lawmakers have floated ideas of simplifying the tax code by putting in place a "flat" income tax rate or a national sales tax. But those ideas have so far not gained much traction in Congress. Opponents say such a system would not be in the best interests of the poor and the middle class who would pay the same tax rate as the wealthy even though they have less disposable income.
You totally nailed it. The current income tax started out as a flat tax and grown into the nightmare we all love to hate.
Now the President is getting votes. Do away with the IRS. No flat tax. National sales tax is the way to go. Even the illegals we have to support would have to pay a little.
A MEN to that brother. The black market will go away. The drug dealers and pilferers will have to PAY for what they consume. I see it as an equal playing field for all Americans, and, even the illegals that we're too ashamed to export back to their countries. There is so much corruption in this country, IMOHO, this is the only way to go.
Name calling? LOL
For record I realize the difficulties in passing legislation. Given the significance of what is being discussed here it would be an up hill battle even if Bush throws his entire weight into supporting it.
It doesn't mean the intent to enact this legislation cannot come to pass, or that this is solely to gain votes.
Bush is damned if he puts forth no further ideas for another term, and dismissed as pandering if he does.
Call me a fool, if will, that I believe in the "possibility" this could be a measure Bush acts on. I'm not saying he will, he hasn't even announced it as his platform yet, but I'm certainly not going to dismiss it out of hand.
You'd better do more than "consider" it, if you want to win in November..............
Well on this we do partially agree. I have no interest to see him abandon, for example, privatising social security or give up in the battle to have his selection of judges appointed.
I'm just not of the opinion that should limit him from voicing a new idea for the future.
Yup. There is a huge black and gray market. I'm retired on a fixed income. I'd like to see a Nat'l. sales tax; especially since we don't spend much since Uncle confiscates a lot more of our income than we can keep.
I'm not calling you a fool, I am saying that anyone who decides to vote for an incumbent on the basis of an "idea" that the incumbent didn't do anything about during a first term is a fool.
Because you are going to vote for the incumbent, without regard to such any such late inning promises, I was not referring to you.
It's already happened at the state level (at least in Michigan) and it's bound to happen at the federal level eventually.
ping...
The Internet isn't as tax-free as you think it is. Most sellers such as Amazon.com still have to pay corporate taxes, in addition to other income taxes. Though it's invisible, the cost is borne by the consumer as reflected in the prices of the products.
and it would usher in state sales taxes being assessed on out of state purchases.
State sales taxes are already assessed on out of state purchases in some states. Other states ask you to do so come tax time by filling out a form and calculating [your] state sales tax to the amount purchased. So this is somewhat of a red herring.
Once the federal government established the national sales tax architecture, the states would be able to piggyback quickly.
This would probably be a good thing, since property taxes would decline. I'm all for paying a slightly higher state sales tax instead of property taxes, and most counties would be in favor of it too. Remember that most counties already charge anywhere between .05% and 1% sales tax in addition to state sales taxes.
A sales tax is the smartest, easiest, and most cost effective method to fund the federal government. You control gov't spending and you get first crack at your paycheck.
Thank you for the clarification.
I'd expand your statement to include ALL politicians, though. One doesn't have to be an incumbent to promise change then not deliver. In part electing a candidate is a measure of faith.
What I know of Bush leads me to belive *IF* he is fully committed to this change we'll see action on the matter. When examining his term the issues he took to heart have either passed or been adopted in one form or another. I'd say determination on whether he is serious about this matter will be reflected in his attitude. If he's serious, his attitude will be reminiscent of his drive for tax cuts, presciption drugs and the Iraq war. The middle I wasn't in favor of but he clearly fought for that legislation in the same way he did the other two.
The pandering goes on.
Good morning, taxpayers
Every year an independent tax watchdog group analyzes the average tax burden on Americans, and then calculates the "Tax Freedom Day." This is the day after which the money you earn goes to you, not the government.
This year, tax freedom day was April 11th. That's the earliest it has been since 1991. It's latest day ever was May 2nd, which occurred in
2000. Notice anything special about those dates?
Today John Kerry gave a speech in which he claimed Americans are actually paying more taxes under Bush, despite the tax cuts. He gave no explanation and provided no data for this claim. Another interesting fact: Both George Bush and John Kerry are wealthy men. Bush owns only one home, his ranch in Texas. Kerry owns 4 mansions, all worth several million dollars. (His ski resort home in Idaho is an old
barn brought over from Europe in pieces. Not your average A-frame).
Bush paid $250,000 in taxes this year; Kerry paid $90,000. Does that sound right? The man who wants to raise your taxes obviously has figured out a way to avoid paying his own.
Correct on all points. And all this discussion of form of taxation is serving to distract us from the FACT that the basic problem is government SPENDING.
Try this on for size http://apttax.com/
President Bush (news - web sites) said on Tuesday that abolishing the U.S. income tax system and replacing it with a national sales tax was an idea worth considering.
Definitely.
A Taxreform bump for you all.
If you would like to be added to this ping list let me know.
John Linder in the House & Saxby Chambliss Senate, offer a comprehensive bill to kill all income and payroll taxes outright, and provide a IRS free replacement in the form of a retail sales tax:
H.R.25, S.1493
A bill to promote freedom, fairness, and economic opportunity by repealing the income tax and other taxes, abolishing the Internal Revenue Service, and enacting a national retail sales tax to be administered primarily by the States.Refer for additional information: http://www.fairtax.org & http://www.salestax.org
Ping
I believe this tax would be best for all taxpayers but we would have to step on the politicians necks to control spending. http://apttax.com/
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