This is where the GOP made a big mistake.
We needed to allow higher taxes on the millionaires in exchange for requiring that all levels of taxpayers at least pay something to demonstrate to the lower income earner the cost of government.
I really don’t understand why we had to die on that hill. The average guy doesn’t understand S corps and all that garbage. He just knows that the guy who makes $250k a year shouldn’t pay a lower marginal rate than him.
And we didn’t have to give on the $250k line. We could have simply said everyone over one million in earnings pays a higher marginal rate with less deductions. That would have hit all sorts of celebrities and athletes who loved Obama.
We needed a meaningful tax reform platform. Trying to explain why no tax increase for millionaires was too hard to explain. The optics were terrible.
Amen....FLAT TAX!!! Just like the state’s Sales tax...FLAT RATE THAT EVERYONE PAYS......18% after a personal exemption is fine with me!!
We needed to allow higher taxes on the millionaires in exchange for requiring that all levels of taxpayers at least pay something to demonstrate to the lower income earner the cost of government.
I partially disagree. For one thing, you are basically saying that everyone pays more. Goodbye, economy, hello, even bigger gov't. (Ok, we're headed that way anyway, but your idea makes it worse.)
Also, though I agree about making lower income learners aware of the cost of Government, the avg. Joe or Josie is not really that "aware" of what's withheld from their paycheck. They MAY know the number at the end of the year, but few average people (outside of FReepers and like minded people, who are NOT average), even if they are tight on $$, look at their paycheck stub for 10 minutes each payday, whilst turning the air blue about the amount withheld.
IMO, a National Sales Tax (not a VAT), with a lower rate for necessities like food, should replace the Income Tax. If people got whacked with a steep rate, on top of existing state & local rates, every time they make a purchase, that'd be quite effective "education", I believe.
I really don’t understand why we had to die on that hill. The average guy doesn’t understand S corps and all that garbage. He just knows that the guy who makes $250k a year shouldn’t pay a lower marginal rate than him.
What if that guy risked his money and as a result he created 200 jobs? (Risk / reward).
And we didn’t have to give on the $250k line. We could have simply said everyone over one million in earnings pays a higher marginal rate with less deductions. That would have hit all sorts of celebrities and athletes who loved Obama.
That still discourages many job providers and grows the Gov't, unless you have a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution. It also does not actually increase revenue in many scenarios, and can decrease it in some.
Now, if you are suggesting some sort of highly progressive "entertainers' tax", I would not object, and I think few voters would. :-)
We needed a meaningful tax reform platform. Trying to explain why no tax increase for millionaires was too hard to explain. The optics were terrible.
The thing is, as I was just discussing with my wife earlier today, Romney actually DID explain it wonderfully, in the 1st debate, adding that tax increases, especially in a soft economy, "never get you there". It just frustrates me all to heck that he did not stay with that in the next 2 debates, because Obama had no reply, and in fact argued basically the same, a couple years ago.
Yep, everyone should have skin in the game, not just payroll taxes. GOP bought into this stupidity in the 1980s, unmindful of long term impact.