Posted on 06/10/2008 5:17:40 AM PDT by BloodOrFreedom
Republican White House candidate John McCain will promise on Tuesday to lower corporate tax rates if he wins the U.S. presidency and ease the tax burden on middle-class workers to help revive the faltering economy.
The Arizona senator, who has wrapped up his party's presidential nomination, also would propose a simpler, alternative tax system and insist that chief executives' pay and severance packages have shareholder approval.
"No matter which of us wins in November, there will be change in Washington. The question is what kind of change?" McCain will tell a conference for small businesses, referring to his Democratic opponent, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois.
"Will we enact the single largest tax increase since the Second World War as my opponent proposes, or will we keep taxes low for families and employers?" he will say, according to excerpts released before his speech.
McCain will pledge to act quickly to lower corporate taxes from "the second highest in the world to one on par with our trading partners to keep businesses and jobs in this country."
He will propose a law to allow companies to expense new equipment and technology in their first year.
He supports keeping capital gains taxes low, doubling a tax exemption for children, and phasing out the "alternative minimum tax" which he said would save some 25 million middle-class families up to $2,000 in a year.
On Monday Obama drew a sharp contrast with McCain, his opponent in the November election, accusing him of wanting to widen President George W. Bush's tax cuts and plunge the United States deeper into debt.
He charged that McCain's support for extending Bush's tax cuts would allow $2 trillion in corporate tax breaks.
U.S. taxes were too complicated overhaul, McCain will say in his speech, in which he will argue for an alternative system.
"As president, I will propose an alternative tax system. When this reform is enacted, all who wish to file under the current system could still do so," he will say.
"Everyone else could choose a vastly less complicated system with two tax rates and a generous standard deduction."
McCain criticizes Obama for wanting to increase dividend and capital gains taxes and aiming to raise the minimum wage and link it to an index.
But he also takes aim at top corporate executives with big salaries and excessive severance packages.
"Americans are right to be offended when the extravagant salaries and severance deals of CEOs ... bear no relation to the success of the company or the wishes of shareholders," he will say, adding that some of those chief executives helped bring on the country's housing crisis and market troubles.
"If I am elected president, I intend to see that wrongdoing of this kind is called to account by federal prosecutors. And under my reforms, all aspects of a CEO's pay, including any severance arrangements, must be approved by shareholders," he will say. (Editing by Chris Wilson
See my post 180. There’s very few people who are qualified and able to do the CEO’s job. Those that can, command salaries and severance packages that are negotiated in advance, and approved by the board, which is elected by the shareholders.
There’s no issue here that I can see other than envy someone is capable enough to be able to command such a compensation package.
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Is McCain's campaign staff so inept that they would have him make these comments knowing that Fiorina is part of the problem he's purportedly out to solve- leaving him more vulnerable to attack by Obama? These guys are either 1st class buffoons or cynical and arrogant in their belief that they won't get caught. McCain has a sordid personal and political history of saying one thing and doing what he needs that is contrary to it for his personal self interests.
ahhh but there is a HUGE difference.. CEO’s negotiate contracts like everyone else.... get over it..
Did the name “Charles Keating” come up?
With McCain, we buy ourselves a little time before the inevitable collapse of the Republic. That’s the only reason to make any effort to go vote for him.
The solution has worked for a long time. If you don’t trust management, or think they are overpaid, don’t own the stock, or use your stock to vote for new directors.
Good stuff from McCain. He keeps this up and I will be cutting checks to his campaign.
Since I own a lot of stock, I can tell you that it doesn’t work. Yes, I do sell stock when I think that a company I own has that problem. But it’s a problem whether I sell or not, and it’s a problem for the nation—not just me. I don’t think that a CEO who drives a company into a ditch should be rewarded with millions, even hundreds of millions of dollars. There is only one explanation for this result, and it is that those who own the company are being cheated because they don’t have the control that they should have over the company. There is no way to say, “These guys deserve what they get because of the good job they did.” Of course, I have no problem paying someone who does a good job a lot of money. But I’m talking about those who don’t. And under our flawed system, those people often walk away with a bundle as well.
I understand the problem.. however the solution is in the negotiated contract NOT an issue of legislation.. IMHO.. What you are suggesting is a HUGE step towards Government CONTROL of private industry.... IMHO
I understand what you’re saying, but additional regulations from the federal gov’t should make you queasy. You, and your fellow shareholders are all big boys and girls and can probably figure it out.
For later read
Let them begin with the big cheeses (supposedly) running AMR/AA.
So you think this legislation would only apply to CEO's that suck? Riiiiight.
They do make me queasy, but the system we’ve got is broken. When you think of all the federal regulations we’ve got, this one is the one that would make the most sense. And the fact that we don’t do it just causes pressure for other types of regulation which don’t work. Here we’ve got McCain saying that we should regulate their pay. If we don’t do something about this problem, you can bet that ultimately the idiots in Congress will do just that.
By becoming a coroporation you are agreeing that your company will be bound by the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission and all other regulations applicable to corporations within the US and the several states. No company is obligated to incorporate and no CEO of any company that is not incorporated will be affected by McCain's proposals. Any corporation that cannot abide by these rules can simply reorganize and become something other than a corporation.
I can be convinced otherwise, but I really don’t have an issue (RIGHT NOW) with requiring shareholders to approve CEO compensation packages. It’s not like it’s going to change anything. The CEO is there because of the board and the shareholders voted the board in (which is done by the biggest shareholders typically).
So in the end all it does is unmask the hidden perks and backdoor deals that a PUBLIC company should NOT be allowed to hide in the first place.
McCain will get a bill from Harry and Nancy called “The CEO compensation reform act”.
Thats all that matters. The reform act will simply be a massive tax increase, with a recession soon to follow. McCain, our sanctimonious humble servant will sign it.
Regulated pay?
Let’s regulate HIS pay! Senators are paid too much anyway! Sheesh!
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