President Obama's New Deficit-Reduction Plan
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2011-09-20/president-obamas-new-deficit-reduction-plan
President Obama unveiled a new long-term deficit reduction plan yesterday. It calls for new taxes on the wealthiest Americans. And it seeks to eliminate tax loopholes for the biggest corporations. The president said it will cut the deficit by more than $3 trillion over the next decade. Republicans - opposed to any new taxes - immediately attacked the proposal. Analysts say the president's sharply drawn battle lines could make it harder for the congressional super-committee. The bipartisan group is tasked with reaching a deficit-cutting deal by Thanksgiving. Diane and her guests will talk about what's in the plan and how it's being received in Congress and the country.
Guests
Norman Ornstein
resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and coauthor of "The Broken Branch: How Congress Is Failing America and How to Get It Back on Track."
Isabel Sawhill
senior fellow, Economic Studies, The Brookings Institution.
Naftali Bendavid
national correspondent, The Wall Street Journal.
Congressman Phil Gingrey
Republican, 11th District, Georgia.
Comments
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I think just about everyone has given up on Obama, he is just flailing around wildly looking for something that sticks. The dude should just step aside.
Same old Communist/Socialist B.S. from their party..tax the rich,more laws,hate anyone who has one more dollar then you because you are to stupid,lazy,or a criminal because you have more money then an average Democrat..Who is/are the rich? If you have a better job,are smarter,or work harder,you will be hated by a democrat or a communist...I swear,if you look at what they believe in,~~there is very little difference!!...anti-christian, pro-the state,hate anyone who believes that their money is their's,....same old song and dance!
AMEN BRO' ~ YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT!
good morning, i find congress to be our largest special interest group. these people work for us but legislate themselves. Fixing SSecurity and medcare/aid would be simple if congress was forced to be on these programs. All americans will be on SS and medicare/aid no special interest.
I appreciate your time
THANK YOU for this forum
Charlie,Dayton ohio
what about that charge of class warfare. these guys are laughable. the class warfare is how the executive class uses their massive corporations to gobble up the economy and send millions of our jobs overseas. the real reason we have economic trouble is the very existance of these huge corporations and their ability to leverage the entire world to drive down costs. the very rise of walmart is what is killing the American economy for working people. profitable small businesses like record stores, toy stores, grocery stores, hardware stores and electronic stores have all died because behemoths like walmart put them out of business. the guy who used to run a successful small business is now a greeter at walmart. the girl who used to work for her dad and made a good living is behind the checkout at home depot working full time but needs food stamps to feed her kids. i don't want to get on a rant but why the hell is our government subsidizing the work force of big business with our social safety net. if big business can not afford to pay their employees enough to live on then those businesses should not be in business.
When MLK went to Memphis, Tenn. he expected to be assassinated. For almost 3 years President Obama has pondered whether to risk death by rhetorically seeking justice. Finally he has taken the first action of speaking truth to power, but only as he seeks reelection. The elite power game is one of high stakes.
Just going out to work by the hour is high stakes today. Exercising free speech at work can cost you your job. If Obama's late and moderated advocacy of economic justice has any positive effect it may be that the typical terrorized American citizen will gain the courage to speak their minds and hearts to agree with him, and then to go beyond what he has said about everyone paying a fair share of taxes.
Despite what the "high fivers" (are paid to) say the concept of private property exacts security in the basics for the lowliest person before any luckier one can secure an oversized or obscene amount. What is missing is the community pressure of leveling that used to exist before corporatism changed the social landscape and made criminals secure in their piracy.
Diane will host a very intelligent patriot next Tuesday, Jeremy Rifkin, who has explained in much greater detail what I mean. He is the sort who doesn't require an "Amen , Brother" from some wealth worshiping fascist after every insane insult he hurls. His words make sense and are able to stand on their own before logical and empathetic judgment. In conclusion, let's hope a mild suggestion of needed reform from the President does not result in his assassination by traitors.
Your comments are welcome.
As I mentioned in my Friday's comment, arguing for a progressive tax
on the basis of social justice is both a losing argument (at least
in the US) and also the wrong way to think about taxes. The correct
way to estimate taxes is to consider what premiums a private sector
entity would levy if it were to provide the services provided by the
government. I would think that this would be considered "fair" even
by the most ardent capitalists (i consider myself one).
Taxes are the fees we pay for the services that the government
provides. Considering that most of these benefits are in proportion
to a person's wealth, should the government have been a private
sector entity it would then levy taxes in proportion to a person's
wealth rather than income. Anyone who has lived in a condominium
knows that the fee one pays is independent of his/her income but
proportional to the size of his/her apartment.
In fact this is the way the government distributed the 1 billion it
gave to the survivors of the 9/11 attacks.
So Monte's argument notwithstanding, before one begin shouting
"bloody murder" about the 50\% of the people that pay no taxes, one
should look who are they (how many of these are kids, unemployed
etc.) and what share of the nations wealth they own.
Tomorrow: a simple example why a "flat" tax is utterly unfair
according to the notions outlined above.
I've decided I'm for Cain's 9-9-9 plan, but I think that the banks and other investors won't be happy about paying a 9% tax on each stock purchase. Of course, housing will take another beating when there's a 9% tax on the purchase, but that's how life is.
"So Monte's argument notwithstanding, before one begin shouting
"bloody murder" about the 50\% of the people that pay no taxes, one
should look who are they (how many of these are kids, unemployed
etc.) and what share of the nations wealth they own."
The figure of "50%" is the percentage of people who file tax returns and do pay not federal income taxes.
Well we hear from the congressman that raising taxes onthe wealthy will kill jobs. But a quick review tells us this: 2002 - 2008, tax cuts, no new jobs. 2009- 2011 same tax cuts, no new jobs. Perhaps its time for a change of plan.
When times are good Republican s want to cut regulations and lower taxes.
When times are bad Republicans want to cut regulations and lower taxes.
When the bad times are caused by Republicans cutting regulations and lowering taxes, the Republican solution is to cut regulations and lower taxes.
"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
--Albert Einstein
Fairtaxman,
I'm confused about your notion that 'private sector entity... would then levy taxes in proportion to a person's wealth rather than income.' When you go to the grocery store, does the checkout person ask your net worth or adjusted gross income and THEN recalculate your bill based on your ability to pay. NO! Condominiums charge maintainance fees based on your portion of the total square footage of the building, not your wealth/income. Condo dwellers choose the size unit they inhabit, don't they? Does Bill Gates receive any more service from government than someone who is flat broke and unemployed? NO! My theory is that 'progressive' income tax leads only to higher prices, since high income earners tend to set their own wage scale and merely pass on their higher tax bill on to the consumers of their goods/ services. Any thoughts?
Eric
Congressman Phil Gingrey's comments were total political-speak. The Republican Party has absolutely no incentive to work with President Obama. The leadership of the party can use the tea party as a smoke screen for no negotiations, but in reality their core constituency , ie the rich in America are doing better than they ever have. Why would any Republican want to cut his own financial neck by trying to improve the economy for the poor and middle class. They've never had it so good.
Congressman Gringrey referred to the upper class as "supposedly rich" then more definitively as "job creators". This is part of the Orwellian Goodspeak of the GOP. This wording make the rich out as some sort of ambivalent giver of goods to the lower classes in a paternalistic and altruistic spirit. The GOP is calling Obama's proposal "class warfare" at the same time. We've seen what the tax break for the richest has done during the Bush no-growth-decade. Real income has gone down for most of us... not for the rich.
One may only be labeled a job creator only after one has created a job.
One who hoards money in a bank off shore is not a job creator.
Give one a tax break for each job one shall have created.
- - -
Tax anyone who donates money to any politician at a rate of 100%. Place the taxed money in the United Way.
Tax anyone who purchases a temporary media advertisement supporting or opposing any politician or initiative at the same rate of 100%. Place the taxed money in the United Way.
Tax anyone who purchases more than ten presentations of the same temporary media advertisement supporting or opposing any politician or initiative at the rate of 200% to discourage the appearance of propaganda as practiced by Paul Joseph Goebbels, the German politician and Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. Give the money to Reading is Fundamental.
Ben Franklin said that the best form of political oratory is written.
Those who have great gifts have a great responsibility, which is what is being asked of those gifted with wealth. Yes, many millionaires have worked hard to get where they are, but it has been their gifts of intelligence and diligence that got them there. The Blind Elderly, and Disabled have either never received such gifts of capability, or have had their gifts removed with life experience. Let's not forget, too, that while the elderly may not pay taxes on their Social Security income, they are now spending a lot of money on health care, food, and other life sustaining needs.
Just because the wealthy might create jobs doesn't mean they are not responsible to pay equitable taxes to a representative government, which is what we have in the U.S. That is what the Boston Tea Party argued to begin with--no taxation without representation. WE HAVE REPRESENTATION AND WE NEED TO SERVE OUR COUNTRY WITH WHAT WE EARN!
Nancy D. Cincinnati, OH
So they rich should not have to give up one of their 3 houses or the yacht or trips, in order to save an employees position, in which would cause them to forclose on their 1 house, cause divorce, cause their children to then loose focus on school, etc.. We all need to sacrifice somewhere, we all live in this country.
I just want to voice that there is at least one guy that does support Obama's plan. My belt is tight enough down here at around 25k a year, and there are a lot of people on harder times than me. A little help from the guys pulling down two more figures than me would sure be appreciated.
Both sides need to be more flexible and less dogmatic, however, and those who support the plan need to speak up. The image that the far right controls the debate is there because they're the only ones talking.
I just want to voice that there is at least one guy that does support Obama's plan. My belt is tight enough down here at around 25k a year, and there are a lot of people on harder times than me. A little help from the guys pulling down two more figures than me would sure be appreciated.
Both sides need to be more flexible and less dogmatic, however, and those who support the plan need to speak up. The image that the far right controls the debate is there because they're the only ones talking.
As a black woman, I have found it amazing how white people will genuflect to the ones with money with righteous glee and defend their right to not pay a dime of anything. I keep hearing this lie they make money. They create jobs. No way are you going to make $100,000 and $200,000 and hire anything. Tell it to the marines. Who are you going to hire? They don't want to pay anyone. Minimum wage breaks them, yet, tell me how a pay of $5.00 hr 20 years ago should stand today. Did their gas, product, electricity, stay the same for 20 yrs. My dad had a small business in the 60's and 70's. He made the $200,000.00 with a smile and had one employee. The tax cuts of which they are speaking of WERE temporary per George Bush. It is amaing how we forget or tell lies like that who ever he was on the phone. Lying through his teeth. No One is raising anything. Just allowing the rate under Bush to expire as he had intended. Now, I would like someone to please tell me how may jobs were created by these people in the last ten years. No one has an answer. I am waiting. That makes a liar of them all. None. Nada. Zip. Not one but those CEO's got their buchs and you all just love it.
I don't understand the argument that taxing the wealthy would make them hire fewer people. We are talking about taxing their personal wealth, not their businesses!
the poor pay taxes also. i made 14k last year and still payed 1k in taxes.
To this point, the very rich have had their taxes cut and sent American jobs to other parts of the world. Tax cuts don't work for those who have no jobs, earnings or dividends. If this is class warfare, the poor and middle class are losing in spades.
For the gentleman who was talking about those who didn't pay taxes, last year for the first time in 35 years of business, I didn't pay Federal Income Tax. The reason. I had a loss because the economy tanked. Basic math shows that you can't tax those with no money, you have to tax those who have it. And yes you have to tax, because yes, revenue is required to operate this country.
What about the tax code for corporations?
Consider this fact,
ExxonMobil had a profitable year in 2009, it contributed $15 billion to the world's tax coffers. But...not a cent of that went to the IRS. Thanks to the current corporate tax loopholes in the tax code.
General Electric earned $14.2 billion in profits in 2010, but it paid not a penny in taxes because the bulk of those profits, some $9 billion, were offshore. In fact, GE got a $3.2 billion tax benefit. This is crazy!
Congress and the president need to overhaul the tax code and get these very profitable corporations to start paying their fair share! This can't be construed as job-killing because during the Bush administration, these companies already shifted massive amounts of jobs overseas...
Jeff
Bethesda, MD
"Obama is not serious, Obama is flailing, Obama's plan is a joke"
How can America succeed when we let these ad hominid attacks dominate the debate?
As for bogus class warfare, it has always been there and it is a complete lie America has allowed everyone to attain wealth. Tell it to the marines, my dad was in the navy. Any black person, including my father will tell you that is a bald faced lie. He could not get a mortgage, served in WWII because the federal government said not to. He could not get a small business loan, either. Same bigotted reason. My parents bought their home on a land grant. Been in it over 50 yrs. He got a loan from a jewish business man who trusted him. They remained friends till my dad's death.
I am getting tired of the bigots, too. It is the health Reform Act, not Obamacare.
So you oppose his new plan why?
Sadly, the Republican Party has been co-opted by the likes of Grover Norquist, a man who, thanks to his inherited wealth, has never held a job and has never held elected office. Yet, Norquist has the power to get the GOP to sign this oath (or else!):
"ONE, oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rates for individuals and/or businesses; and
"TWO, oppose any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits, unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing tax rates."
President Obama had it right when he said the only oath our Congress should be taking is the one they took to uphold the U.S. Constitution and represent ALL of the people.
By the way, Norquist also said whenever, by chance, a Democratic president is elected the Republicans will make it impossible for him to govern.
When will those individuals making over 250,000.00 that are Christian conservatives begin to use their conscience and literally pay their fare share. This is a morale issue. No where in the world does eliminating government and reducing taxes on the rich people or companies work. The Republicans and Tea Baggers are requesting ridiculous demands. They should be ashamed.