Now some perspective:
“Taxes are a way of managing the bookkeeping system, of setting national priorities for the distribution of wealth created by good ideas and hard work. That’s key: Our country’s wealth is created by everybody. It’s not created by rich people. Rich people are what happen when the bookkeeping units we use to keep track of that wealth – the dollars – get stuck on particular individuals. There are many business owners who are struggling with their bookkeeping and look to firms similar to Dave Burton for support and aid. Others prefer the use of accounting software instead. This way they keep track of their books, but the software does the hard bit for them. A review of two of the best, Xero vs Quickbooks, might be handy if you are looking for this sort of software.
“There is much more than math at stake …. There is no economic law that governs how the $19 trillion we produce each year must be distributed. Figuring out who should get how much of that $19 trillion is a political choice – and the Republicans’ choice is to give much of that money to a few hundred financial dynasties.”
And now the GOP’s scheme, unmasked:
“The GOP says its plan is an effort to ‘fix our broken tax code,’ and there can be no doubt that the code is broken. Our fabulously wealthy nation is mysteriously plagued by poverty. More than 40 million Americans currently live in poverty, including 11.5 million children … [and] 78 percent of U.S. households report living paycheck to paycheck. …
“[But the] GOP tax plan won’t resolve any of those problems. Republicans have assembled a host of tax changes that will ensure that more and more of the nation’s wealth goes to the people who already have most of it. It’s a strategy to inflate existing fortunes, increase profits on Wall Street and enhance the social dominance of people who make their living from investments over people who make their living earning wages and salaries. The heart of the Republican plan is a permanent cut to the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 20 percent. The benefits of that will accrue to people who own corporations. …
“No trained economist seriously believes that shoveling unearned benefits to people who just happen to own or inherit financial assets is good for growth, productivity or anything else. … Cutting the corporate tax rate down to 20 percent doesn’t encourage anything except a one-time jolt to asset prices. …
“When Republicans dole out big tax cuts, they typically offer something for low- and middle-income families to make the process a little less unseemly. It’s not clear if they’ll be able to include those perks this time around … Republicans on Thursday couldn’t promise that their bill wouldn’t ultimately raise taxes on middle-class families. …
“So never mind the budget deficits and growth projections. The GOP tax plan is a simple political statement about who matters more in American democracy: the heirs to hedge fund fortunes or everyone else in the country. Trump and the Republicans have chosen the dynasts. This is not a necessity; we could easily afford a different set of priorities. Social domination by the financial sector is a choice.”
Read the unedited and unabridged article here.
Roger Rabbit Commentary: What I’ve been saying all along, but the article brings their ulterior motives into clearer focus. One thing the article didn’t mention: They’re paying back their rich donors with your money.
It’s not a done deal yet; for now, the country still has a choice. Congress does listen to angry mobs when there are enough of us. But we’re running out of time to make ourselves heard, because they’re fast-tracking this — precisely because they’re trying to get this ship into port before the storm of public indignation hits.
“The United States is the richest country in the history of the world. Last year, the genius and muscle of the American people generated more than $18.6 trillion in wealth. This year, our brains and brawn will combine to create well over $19 trillion. Despite all the debt theatrics of the Republican Party during the Obama presidency, we owe just $6.2 trillion to other countries ? less than four months of our collective labors at their present value.
“Under these circumstances, the question of what the American government can afford is functionally meaningless. If any nation has ever been able to afford quality housing, education, health care, parks, museums ? anything ? the United States can. And we don’t need to tax anyone, rich or poor, in order to afford these fine things. The wealth – the fruits of our labor – already exists.”