Allow me to interject, if I may.....
The Fair Tax taxes government purchases to put them on an equal footing with the private sector.
And with respect to controlling spending:
Unless and until EVERY AMERICAN has a personal, vested, visible, pecuniary interest in the cost of government, the spending will continue unabated.
The low income people erroneously believe they pay no tax, so they logically call for another government program to solve their woe of the day. Unless and until this segment of the population sees and feels the pain of the tax system, they will continue to call for more spending.
Changing the way we collect revenue is ESSENTIAL.
Thank you!
That is the entire point that I have been trying to make throughout this exercise!
I don’t see that. The Feds know that any FT they pay on a purchase comes right back to them, so there is no equal footing. It is just an accounting entry for both the seller & the buyer. And why the need for equal footing, anyway?
“Changing the way we collect revenue is ESSENTIAL.”
I totally agree, but combining welfare with tax collection does not sit right with me. If the gov’t wants to send poor people money, let that be another program, & forget the idea of putting the entire population on the dole every month. The prebate really has NOTHING to do with tax collection. I really like a retail sales tax, exemptions or not. But I will never support the prebate, a casino owner’s dream come true.
And do you really think the pols are gonna allow sales taxes on baby formula, medicine, ....... & 100 other items that would be “cruel” to tax. Oh, they may start out with no exemptions, but when Kerry, Kennedy, Reid, & Co. weep uncontrollably on the Senate Floor while telling the story (with video) of some poor cripple child who can’t afford a Hover-round because of the 30% Federal Fair Tax, you can be sure wheelchairs+ will be exempt. Better to specify a humane set of exemptions from the beginning, & fight hard to minimize amendments.
I counted 26 states + DC that don’t tax food here:
http://www.taxadmin.org/fta/rate/sales.html
Looking at this list, I don’t see any states with exemptions that are bankrupt or have people agitated over sales tax exemptions - some are quite wealthy states. I’m gonna guess that no state with a sales tax but no exemptions sends a prebate check to every one of its citizens. Wonder why?