But Kristol - and much of Washington - misses the point. It’s not that raising tax rates would break the rich. Money is not the issue. Nor will raising rates on the wealthy impede economic growth - such as it is. That is not the issue either.
The point is, we don’t have a revenue problem, we have a spending problem. It’s a simple, common sense principle:
Don’t raise taxes until you have to. And that means, cutting every last dollar from the budget that can be safely squeezed out of it before thinking about raising taxes on anybody to balance the budget.
Even if it “wouldn’t kill the country” Bill . . if you cave on this, you think they’ll stop at the % and level of taxable incomes?
Or will that just encourage them further?
Was it Kristol’s grandfather that said it won’t kill if they kill the jews.
Get ready, folks. Nothing “conservative” will happen. Here comes Obamacare, amnesty, and higher taxes. Forget about cutting spending.
Kristol, a “Conservative” Commentator?......gag me
I’m cutting Kristol some slack for this. I completely agree in principle that the issue is spending, and that agree in fact that raising taxes on the rich will have negligible impact.
But I see some merit in giving Obama what he wants if only to demonstrate to the public that his “solutions” are nothing of the sort.
Here is an idea I have completely not thought through: why not make any tax increase “temporary”?
Raise the taxes of the Hollywood elites.
Raise the taxes of the Silicon Valley Obama enthusiasts.
Raise the taxes of the Warren Buffets and other limousine liberals who have been begging for the government to take their wealth.
Now having siad that, these same “wealthy” types out to be prosecuted if they attempt to shelter their assets offshore following the increase. George Lucas, the hypocrite, comes to mind.
First - that isn't a new idea. It's been around since Karl Marx and FDR, and it's been destroying economic freedom for decades.
It “won’t kill me” if Kristol will be struck dumb!
Let them reap what they sow.
A conservative is just a Liberal who got mugged, after all.
Let there be mugggings!
Obama still has no plan. His last attempt at a budget got exactly zero votes in the House and Senate. Let him put his tax and spending plan in writing in the open for all to see and review.
Given his and Reid’s success in getting budgets passed over the last 4 years, let these power-hungry thieves put a plan in writing first. I know it’s asking for much, but the Republicans owe nothing in concessions. It is the up to the President to take the lead. As we all know, he is incapable of leadership. No reason to take the lead of surrender monkeys like Kristol and let Obama and Reid off the hook.
So please explain to me why I should believe or support anything that the GOP says? We have a deal that cuts spending, stick to the deal. Make a new deal for more spending cuts when once again the debt ceiling has to be raised in a couple of months.
"It won't kill the country if we raise taxes a little bit on millionaires..."
Ah yes, the ever-prescient Mr. Kristol. The man who accurately told us all how the Democracy Movement in Egypt was going to bring peace and prosperity to the Mideast...
Taxing the rich is a tag line that will make little difference in the economy-the truth is, the rich don’t have enough money to fix it. And the government’s insatiable lust for spending will never be curbed by more revenue, which will mostly likely only serve to increase spending. Like a drug addict on a binge, the only thing that will instill restraint will be a total collapse of the economy, which Obama’s re-election will only serve to hasten.
One point that is seldom made is that the “tax on millionaires” will be a tax on their income, not their worth or assets.
For the majority of them, they can move their income to the poverty level and continue to live the life to which they are accustomed.
Does any thinking person really believe the definition will not be lowered further, since thats where the real money is?
Mr. Kristol,
the reason we oppose higher taxes is because they are already so incredibly high that they are choking off the American economy and killing jobs.
Raising them further will only push more people onto the dole.
What we need to do is LOWER taxes significantly (cutting dysfunctional and.or wasteful spending to bring the resulting budget into balance).
We would normally look to you in your position to be championing LOWERING taxes, not giving cover or “enabling” the communist left to further raise them!
Please reconsider.
Fred Barnes and Kristol are going with glass half full optimism, after Barnes was SO wrong and neither apparently will not be feeling it in their pocket books like the rest of us. A good ‘buying opportunity’ in stocks for them. Where in Manhattan or Westchester suburb do they live? Aargh.
Those "M's and B's" that voted for Obama don't have regular income!!!!!