“I tend to scare myself"
Posted on 03/10/2011 10:04:08 AM PST by Sub-Driver
Stephen King Bashes Reagan and Republicans For Making His Taxes Too Low By Noel Sheppard Created 03/10/2011 - 11:21am
By Noel Sheppard | March 10, 2011 | 11:21 Noel Sheppard's picture
Horror writer Stephen King on Tuesday bashed Ronald Reagan and a number of Republicans at a Wake the State rally in Sarasota, Florida.
His main beef with conservatives is they allow him to pay too little in taxes (video follows with partial transcript and commentary):
STEPHEN KING: I'm from Maine, but I pay taxes in Florida, too. Let me tell you something: in Maine last November, three candidates ran, the Tea Party guy won by one percent. He's a minority governor. And you know what? The guy's a stone brain. And I thought to myself, "Well, that's alright. I'm a snow bird. I'm gonna go to Florida. Things will be better in Florida."
And on the way down here I drove and I heard about this guy in Wisconsin, his name was [Republican Governor Scott] Walker and apparently he wanted to stop collective bargaining. That’s supposed to balance the budget. That’s the magic bullet. So you’ve got [Republican Governor Paul] LePage in Maine, Walker in Wisconsin, you got [Republican Governor Rick] Scott in Florida. It’s Larry, Curly and Moe. That’s what we got right here.
Now you might say, "What are you doing up there? Aren’t you rich?" The answer is: thank God, yes. Because I grew up poor. I lived in a family where my mother asked donated commodities from a Republican administration and got turned down. That’s where I came from. And you know what? As a rich person I pay 28 percent tax. What I want to ask you is why am I not paying 50? Why isn’t anybody in my bracket not paying 50?
Stop the tape. King in 2010 either didn't make a lot of money or he doesn't know what today's federal income tax brackets are. According to the Internal Revenue Service, the 28 percent bracket for married couples began at $137,300 in income and ended at $209,250.
Can you imagine the kind of recession we'd have if couples making over $137,300 were taxed at 50 percent?
But the ignorance or dishonesty on display didn't end there, for the highest federal bracket is 35 percent for couples making over $373,650, which doesn't include additional "Alternative Minimum Taxes" if they apply.
As such, if King and his wife are only in the 28 percent bracket, it's either because he didn't sell a lot of books last year, or his accountant did a great job reducing their income with write-offs and expenses. If the latter, King could certainly instruct his tax advisor to not take any deductions at all thereby paying the maximum amount of tax provided in the law.
Of course, therein lies the income tax hypocrisy of most liberals: they advocate higher taxes as they do everything within their power to pay as little as possible.
Let's continue:
KING: Well you know what? You know what? The Republicans would tell you, from John Boehner to Mitch McConnell to Rick Scott that we can't do that because if we tax guys like me, there won't be any jobs. It's bull. It's total bull.
Well, it's not just Republicans that made this claim.
King must have been asleep or out of the country when Barack Obama and Bill Clinton stood in front of television cameras in December telling the American people that it would be devastating to the economy to not extend the Bush tax cuts. Ditto when Obama's tax plan passed the Senate 81-19 with only 13 Democrats voting "No," and when it passed the House 277-148 with 139 Democrats voting "Aye."
But idiots like King think it's only Republicans that believe higher taxes are bad for the economy.
Not surprisingly, that wasn't the last absurd comment the horror author made Tuesday:
KING: These people come from the Party of Ronald Reagan, the Great Communicator, who one year put down on his taxes that he gave $10,000 to charity. Well, my wife and I - my wife is here, right there in the Crayola shirt - we try to make up the difference, the shortfall, that 22 percent that we don’t pay, by giving it away. But you know what, I haven’t seen a lot of that going around.
Big Hollywood's John Nolte marvelously responded to this nonsense Wednesday:
Yes, his elitist, holier-than-thou and arrogantly mistaken belief that a whole lot of people in the most charitable country in the world aren’t as charitable as he is, is off-putting in the extreme. But that he’s able to give that 22% of his income not swallowed up by the blackhole of the government directly to the causes he believes in is a beautiful thing. This is exactly why raising taxes is a terrible idea. Regardless of what people do with their money, whatever they do with it is better for this economy than what the government does with it. [...]
Also, King ripping on Reagan giving “only” $10,000 to charity one year is hilarious. Even if it’s true, I’m happy to play that game. Could someone remind Mr. King that in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004, Barack Obama gave a TOTAL of just over $10,000 to charity. But please don’t remind King that Vice President Joe Biden’s charitable giving was beyond laughable, I’d hate to see a best-selling author cry.
Then there’s this. Newsflash, Stephen King: You wouldn’t be so gosh-darned alone in your awesome philanthropy if someone like Ronald Reagan was president.
Second newsflash: Conservatives give more to charity than liberals. So it looks as thought [sic] that loneliness you feel is in your own ideological backyard.
That King doesn't know any of this is not at all surprising as he has over the years made numerous public statements devoid of facts or logic.
This continually leads us at NewsBusters to recommend he stick to writing fiction - his grasp on reality is tenuous at best.
Only two choices here.
Either the hack writer is too stupid to realize that he can donate to the federal government or what he really wants is for YOU to give more of YOUR money to the government.
So which is it Steph?
Stop taking all your deductions then. Just pay the % based on your total income. What’s stopping you?
Tell him to write a check and send it in.
But this does sort of explain the dark and tortured books he writes.
Stephen King...BYTE ME!! If you want to pay more then go right ahead. You don’t speak for me!
Correct. FL has no state income tax. King doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
“I tend to scare myself"
That's fine, Stephen, but, according to Forbes, your net worth is approximately $1 billion (with a "B").
Like crosshairs says:
"Nothing is stopping you from giving all your money to the gubmit. ..... crosshairs"
If income tax rates are raised, the vast majority of taxes will not be raised from the Billionaires like you, Stephen. You guys can simply stop earning income, pay zero Federal taxes, and still spend $50 million per year for the next 20 years if you so please. Bill Gates avoids income taxes by glorifying his own name, tax-free, by taking his Billions and giving it to his own foundation.
The ones who take it in the chops with higher income taxes are the small business owners that puts in 80 hours weeks to earn $300,000 per year and build the backbone of the American economy.
If Billionaires like Stephen King and Bill Gates are so eager to raise income taxes for the rest of us, I have a simple soltution:
A Wealth Tax of 5% per for all personal wealth over $100 million which cannot be tax-sheltered in any foundation.
Your tax bill for this year comes out to $50 million, Stephen.
I have this bumper sticker on my truck
“If You Want You Can Always Donate To The IRS”
Well Stephen, here’s what you do. Whip out your checkbook, and write out a check for whatever amount you think will make you feel better. Send it to the treasury.
Okay?
Not one thin dime...
* You can write a check payable to the Bureau of the Public Debt, and in the memo section, notate that it's a Gift to reduce the Debt Held by the Public. Mail your check to:
Attn Dept G
Bureau of the Public Debt
P. O. Box 2188
Parkersburg, WV 26106-2188
Steve, I'll even address the envelope and put on a stamp for you (44¢ only, I won't pay or a jumbo size sweepstakes winner check).
This is what you get when your life revolves around fiction. Half a$$ed ideas that are more than fiction.
Frantzie, does your pony do any other tricks?
28% sounds like he pays the alternative minimum tax or benefits from one of the many deductions and loopholes in the tax code.
or he might have a lot of revenue tied up in dividends, which are taxed at a max of 15%.
And no doubt taking a big fat tax deduction for it.
I live around the corner from this idiot savant. When war hero John Kerry was running for President, he had a Kerry/Edwards sign in his front yard that you could see from outer space.
Capitalism has been very, very good to this overgrown adolescent.
Maybe his books aren't selling very well. After seeing a $14 trillion dollar debt, suddenly a clown in the sewer just doesn't seem all that scary anymore.
Beat me to it.
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