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.
Nothing is stopping him from giving all his money to the gubmit.
Feel free to pay more.
He's probably too stupid to realize that.
No one’s stopping King from giving as much of his money as he wants to gov’t.
lol...first 4 posts said essentially the same thing.
Personally, I think King went off the deep end a long time ago. Drugs? Being hit by a car? Who knows. If he wants to pay more taxes then write a check.
Sadly a few idiots who post on FR like his garbage. Probably clueless Obama TV watchers I bet.
I don’t read his stuff, mass produced dribble now from what I gather used to be fairly good. Anyway, I was aware of his politics and rued the day he survived that car mishap.
Meanwhile, memo to Mr. King: The president does NOT lower taxes. All tax legislation starts in the house. The tax cut suggested by Reagan was championed by none other than Mr. Dan Rostenkowski, who even went on TV to push for it. BTW, Reagan retired in glory, Rostenkowski retired to a court room as a defendant. So, stick it in your ear and if you are so happy up in Maine, stay there and cuddle up with the cutie senators you have up there. We like our Gov and one of our senators. The last state elected official Nelson, a dem, will be on his way out very soon.
Thomas Tusser, 1557
Ummmm, Steve.....
You can pay more than you owe, nobody is stopping you from paying more than what’s on your bill. There’s no law against giving more of your money to the government.
No Stephen, you are NOT paying taxes in Florida. Income Taxes anyway. But what Conservative forced you to move there? Was it more likely the Moonbats who have been running Maine with high taxes?
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.
Seems like he has a staff of financial people who are finding loopholes and sheltering a lot of his money. He could always pay more taxes, if he fired them. Then, however, he'd contribute to rising unmeployment. BTW, he pays property taxes in FL, but not individual income tax. Anyone think that second home is situated in FL by accident?
He’s a terrible writer, which is not surprising given his inability to reason.
No, he really thought everybody else’s taxes were too low.
There’s a reason that the rich, as in the people who already got theirs’, love raising taxes. It tends to keep away competition.
Wow, after reading this I can only say that he is way stupider than I would have believed. The guy can write a nicely organized trashy horror book, but his thought process is juvenile and bizarre.
the bilionaire libs are not indignant about “their” taxes being too low, for they are obviously free to overpay their bill... (surely they overpay all their bills and tip the staff generously- ha)
they are indignant about “my” taxes being too low
I am simply selfishly keeping far more than “my” fair share of what the government owns - my income
He probably votes twice as well..And isn't that against the law..Oh sorry not for idiots like this one..He has such a sick mind no wonder he sounds like a crazy person..
He probably votes twice as well..And isn't that against the law..Oh sorry not for idiots like this one..He has such a sick mind no wonder he sounds like a crazy person..
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