Tea party appetizer: “Our Troubling Tax System”
posted at 8:50 pm on April 14, 2009 by Allahpundit
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No crudités or finger sandwiches for this party; just raw red meat, still on the bone, courtesy of the Cato Institute. Consider it a companion piece to Reason TV’s “unpatriotic” critique last week of our progressive income tax, a point echoed in yesterday’s Journal by Ari Fleischer:
According to the CBO, those who made less than $44,300 in 2001 — 60% of the country — paid a paltry 3.3% of all income taxes. By 2005, almost all of them were excused from paying any income tax. They paid less than 1% of the income tax burden. Their share shrank even when taking into account the payroll tax. In 2001, the bottom 60% paid 16.3% of all taxes; by 2005 their share was down to 14.3%. All the while, this large group of voters made 25.8% of the nation’s income.
When you make almost 26% of the income and you pay only 0.6% of the income tax, that’s a good deal, courtesy of those who do pay income taxes. For the bottom 40%, the redistribution deal is even better. In 2001, these 43 million Americans, who earn less than $30,500, made 13.5% of the nation’s income but paid no income tax. Instead, they received checks from their taxpaying neighbors worth $16.3 billion. By 2005, those checks totaled $33.3 billion.
Gallup reports today that 48 percent of the public thinks their tax rate is “about right.” Given Fleischer’s numbers, I’ll bet.
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Educate and inform the whole mass of the people… They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.
Thomas Jefferson
Col.John Wm. Reed on April 15, 2009 at 8:45 AM
Great stuff!
scalleywag on April 15, 2009 at 8:46 AM
raw? the heart is still beating.
MarkTheGreat on April 15, 2009 at 8:48 AM
NBC just said republicans are having trouble organizing tea parties to offset Obama’s Speech yesterday.
They don’t care when these things started…most Americans think it is a republican fight against Obama…it is only in that he is president.
They don’t report the news until FOX does and then they frame the narrative. Just like The Onion article on Obama’s double Homicide…except this isn’t funny.
tomas on April 15, 2009 at 8:48 AM
The battle to save the US is over, we lost.
MarkTheGreat on April 15, 2009 at 8:50 AM
Sounds like getalife is worried about his mom’s welfare check.
MarkTheGreat on April 15, 2009 at 8:51 AM
Shhh, you’ll wake the troll. They don’t like to rise before noon or so.
scalleywag on April 15, 2009 at 9:04 AM
Don’t forget the other taxes….
Sales Tax
Gasoline Tax (45 cents per gallon)
Cell phone taxes
Cable taxes
Local municipal tax (where you work)
Local municipal tax (where you work, if different from your residence)
Accounts receivable tax
Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT)
Building permit tax
Capital gains tax
CDL license tax
Cigarette tax
Corporate income tax
Court fines (indirect taxes)
Dog license tax
Estate Tax
Excise tax
Federal unemployment tax (FUTA)
FICA tax
Fishing license tax
Food license tax
Fuel permit tax
Generation Skipping Tax
Gift tax
Hunting license tax
Inheritance tax interest expense (tax on the money)
Inventory tax IRS interest charges (tax on top of tax)
IRS penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor tax
Local income tax
Luxury taxes
Marriage license tax
Medicare tax
Property tax
Real estate tax
Recreational vehicle tax
Road toll booth taxes
Road usage taxes (Truckers)
Sales tax and equivalent use tax
School tax
Septic permit tax
Service charge taxes
Social Security tax
State income tax
State unemployment tax (SUTA)
Telephone federal excise tax
Telephone federal, state and local surcharge taxes
Telephone federal universal service fee tax
Telephone minimum usage surcharge tax
Telephone recurring and non-recurring charges tax
Telephone state and local tax
Telephone usage charge tax
Toll bridge taxes
Toll tunnel taxes
Tourist development tax
Traffic fines (indirect taxation)
Trailer registration tax
Transfer tax and Generation-skipping transfer tax
Utility taxes (electric, water, sewage, trash, phone)
Vehicle license registration tax
Vehicle sales tax
Watercraft registration tax
Well permit tax
Wheel tax
Workers compensation tax
Did I leave anything out?
joshlbetts on April 15, 2009 at 9:13 AM
If you don’t include FICA taxes on wages (as Fleischer fails to do), it isn’t a fair depiction of what people really pay in federal taxes. The federal income tax is progressive and does fall lightly on the lowest income earners, for good reason as other taxes, especially sales taxes, are disproportionately born by those earning lower incomes.
starfleet_dude on April 15, 2009 at 9:50 AM
Adam Smith in his classic text The Wealth of Nations wrote the following about progressive taxation:
starfleet_dude on April 15, 2009 at 9:52 AM
Thank you for condemning Pres. Obama’s and congress’ plans to impose higher and higher cost of living increases in the future beyond even the plainly obvious future tax hikes to offset these massive deficits they are running. If normal everday expenses proportionately hurt lower income people more, then his (and our recent government’s) inflationary policies will no doubt hit these people worst. Who do you think companies will be passing their cap & trade cost increases on to? When Obama said his policies would necessitate that energy costs “skyrocket”, who do you think will feel it the most? Wake up, Capt. Kirk….this guy is decidedly NOT on our (middle class) side.
Huckabye-Romney on April 15, 2009 at 11:36 AM
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