Posted on 07/08/2012 1:02:22 PM PDT by bestintxas
A former Democratic senator and presidential candidate is proposing a controversial fix to the nation's economic woes: raise taxes, and not just on millionaires.
"No one is saying that right now, and someone has to say it," Bill Bradley said on CNN's "State of the Union."
"If we're going to succeed, we have to face our problems squarely. The deficit is one problem, and that requires taxes on a lot of people, not just the wealthy," Mr. Bradley said.
The former NBA star, who mounted a 2000 presidential bid but ultimately lost to Al Gore, appeared on CNN on Sunday morning to promote his new book, "We Can All Do Better."
In it, he lays out controversial steps the federal government should take to turn around a stalled economy. In addition to hiking taxes on many Americans, he proposes a massive $1 trillion infrastructure bill that would fund 50 projects across the nation.
Mr. Bradley also supports significant federal intervention into workplace hiring, floating an idea that would include government paying 30 percent of the salaries for new workers hired in the private sector, provided the companies involved did not lay anyone off. The program would be capped at $50 billion, he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
Good thing he is retired.
Let's demand a 100% tax rate on EVERYONE.
And call them racists when they fight it.
Why is that so flippin' difficult to understand?
It’s a good thing they invented those Kindle things. It’s a shame to see all of that paper go to waste every time one of these pompous asses writes a “book”.
I watched his interview today on CNN. What he got down to....was that we needed to fund massive infrastructure projects (bridges, roads, etc). But then he hinted that it had to be spread out....no special region getting all the loot. So basically, you’d have fifty states asking for one massive infrastructure project.
I like him when he played for the Knicks, I liked him in the Senate (about as much as possible for a Dem), and I like him now.
All he is saying is that if the country wants a $4T government, then PAY FOR IT, DAMMIT. Stop driving us into a level of debt that will wreck the country.
As to who wants such a big government, unfortunately MANY FREEPERS do - just mention taking a small step away from big government - like telling the truth that Social Security was simply a disguised income tax and ALL of that money was spent decades ago. So if the government is to keep old people from starving, then give the money to the old people that ACTUALLY NEED THE MONEY today, which are poor old people. In other words, MEANS TEST. Same for Medicare. Make people who can afford it, BUY IT.
I know, I know, you old people didn’t spend the money, those big, bad guys in DC did. Well guess what, my kids didn’t spend that money either and they madder than hell at the debt that they’re stuck with. So, if half of the old people on this site don’t care about this debt (or don’t care enough to do anything about it - except to insist that others take the hit), then it’s MORE THAN OBVIOUS that this country is stuck with a $4T government forever, and it’s about time we start to actually PAY FOR IT, for the alternative is even worse.
Thank you Mr. Bradley - you’re still the best.
“If we’re going to succeed, we have to face our problems squarely. The deficit is one problem, and that requires taxes on a lot of people, not just the wealthy,” Mr. Bradley said.
It just goes to show that the politicians believe that what Americans earn by their own sweat and toil is merely what they, (politicians), have decided they can do without at the moment. And when they need it they’ll just take it back.
Actually, raising taxes on the nearly 50% of people who pay no federal income taxes and doing away with the fraudulent “earned income tax credit” would take the wind out of the sails of the liberal establishment who have been telling people they reason they are “poor” is because people who have “more” than they have are “stealing from them” rather than telling them if you have no skills get some or you will forever be poor.
Even if we did tax everybody more, and did cover the deficit, and it magically didn't have the effect of collapsing the economy and subsequent tax revenues, we would be left with a big problem. That problem is the government would come up with even more give aways that the "people" "need" desperately.
““If we’re going to succeed, we have to face our problems squarely. The deficit is one problem, and that requires taxes on a lot of people, not just the wealthy,” Mr. Bradley said.”
We don’t live in a dictatorship (yet). People DEMAND that we have a $4T government through their elected representatives. Therefore, the government should be collecting $4T each year, and Mr. Bradley states the OBVIOUS, which is that there simply are not enough of “the rich” to bring us to that level.
If we don’t want such a big government, then maybe we start re-assessing what we DEMAND from government - starting with Social Security and Medicare...then we can also work on the rest (food stamps, disability, education, housing, etc.). But we are NO BETTER than the liberals - they want to keep ‘their programs’ (i.e., handouts), but we want to ‘our programs’ (Social Security and Medicare). So we’re stuck...and NOTHING gets cut, and the debt soars.
Works for me....I would be more than willing to pay a little more if EVERYBODY pays a little more.....like the 50 % who do not pay NOTHING...
But since that will NEVER ever happen...
“If we’re going to succeed, we have to face our problems squarely. The deficit is one problem, and that requires taxes on a lot of people, not just the wealthy,” Mr. Bradley said.
Typical libtard position. Never consider reduction of expenditures...only more, more, more. And, THAT, ladies and gentlemen, requires more, more, more taxes.
It’s well past time to get this government back within the confines of the Constitution.
“Works for me....I would be more than willing to pay a little more if EVERYBODY pays a little more.....like the 50 % who do not pay NOTHING...But since that will NEVER ever happen... “
Actually, some of that could happen - if the Bush Tax Cuts are allowed to end. You would probably bring the participation rate up to 65% or 70% then. It would be great for the country, but, unfortunately, the Republicans are TOO STUPID to allow it.
I was at subway when he was on. The local subway has CNN. He also said, that Govt was the foundation of America. That’s is really sad. In the 1930s we had term for that in Germany and Italy.
I remember when Dollar Bill was representing New Jersey and all the Dems said he was a genius.
He is dumb as a stump and was a state embarrassment - and for New Jersey, THAT is something!
I too agree we should pay for the government we have.
Why, oh why, is it that most of the comments on how to do that center around raising taxes rather than shrinking expenditures?
This Moron was once asked to name the three statesmen he admired the most and one of the three was Mikhail Gorbachev. He is an absolute idiot!!!
“Why, oh why, is it that most of the comments on how to do that center around raising taxes rather than shrinking expenditures?”
That’s because we’ve reached a stalemate regarding cutting expenditures. Republicans have (lightly) tried to take on our social programs, such as Social Security and had their heads removed for it (1986 and 2006) and Democrats simply won’t allow their social programs to be cut without the Republicans having some skin in the game. Stalemate.
So - now it’s higher taxes are economic meltdown (i.e., hyper-inflation). I prefer the tax route, but others don’t seem to have accepted that there is no ‘third way’.
Hmmm, lets explore that idea. Perhaps a change to the AMT so that everyone has to pay in an amount that is at least the lowest tax rate? No tax credits, no exemptions, no allowances or any other contrivance. Since the lowest tax rate is currently 10%, then everyone has to pay at least 10% of thier income. After all ... it is their fair share.
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