VN:F [1.9.13_1145]
VN:F [1.9.13_1145]
Posts Tagged ‘Death and…’
Day 11: Responsibilities of American Citizenship
Friday, June 24th, 2011Romney: Tax deal, bad deal
Tuesday, December 14th, 2010By Mitt Romney
Death and taxes, it is said, are life’s only two certainties. But in the wake of President Obama’s tax compromise with congressional Republicans, only death retains the status of certainty: The future for taxes has been left up in the air. And uncertainty is not a friend of investment, growth and job creation.
The deal has several key features. It reduces payroll taxes, extends unemployment benefits and keeps current tax rates intact. So far, so good. But intermixed with the benefits are considerable costs of consequence. Given the unambiguous message that the American people sent to Washington in November, it is difficult to understand how our political leaders could have reached such a disappointing agreement. The new, more conservative Congress should reach a better solution.
The deal keeps current tax rates from rising to pre-Bush era levels for two years. But in 2013, unless Congress acts again, rates will increase dramatically.
Possibly related articles:
White House Concedes on Upper Income Tax Cuts
Thursday, November 11th, 2010President Obama senior adviser David Axelrod insisted Thursday that comments he made to an an online publication conceding to an extension of tax cuts for all income levels are no different from remarks by the president over the weekend.
Axelrod, who confirmed to Fox News comments he made to The Huffington Post, suggested that the administration is ready to accept an across-the-board continuation of current tax rates, marking a turnaround from the White House’s pre-midterm election stance on impending tax increases.
Continue reading “White House Concedes on Upper Income Tax Cuts” »
Possibly related articles:
Tax bill for Republicans to consider
Monday, November 8th, 2010Now that Republicans have taken office, it is time to consider some new tax bills. Obama will, no doubt, veto them, but let’s have a look.
H.R.99, the Fair and Simple Tax Act of 2009 would, according to the January 6, 2009 summary:
Fair and Simple Tax Act of 2009 – Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) establish an alternative income tax rate system with three tax brackets (10, 15, and 30%); (2) repeal the estate and gift tax; (3) adjust the increased alternative minimum tax (AMT) exemption amounts for inflation after 2008 and make such exemptions permanent; (4) reduce the maximum corporate income tax rate to 25%; (5) reduce the maximum tax rate on capital gains to 10%; (6) allow an inflation adjustment to the basis of capital assets for purposes of determining gain or loss; (7) establish new tax-exempt accounts for retirement savings, lifetime savings, and lifetime skills accounts; (8) exempt individuals under age 65 who do not have employer health care coverage from the adjusted gross income threshold for the medical care tax deduction; and (9) make permanent the tax credit for increasing research activities.
Repeals the terminating dates applicable to provisions of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 and the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003.
This bill was introduced by 15-term Representative David Dreier of California’s 26th district and now has three co-sponsors.
Continue reading “Tax bill for Republicans to consider” »
Possibly related articles:
Bankruptcy of U.S. is ‘Mathematical Certainty,’ Says Former CEO of Nation’s 10th Largest Bank
Sunday, November 7th, 2010By Terence P. Jeffrey
(CNSNews.com) – John Allison, who for two decades served as chairman and CEO of BB&T, the nation’s 10th largest bank, told CNSNews.com it is a “mathematical certainty” that the United States government will go bankrupt unless it dramatically changes its fiscal direction.
Allison likened what he sees as the predictable future bankruptcy of the United States to the problems at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, whose insolvency he also said was foreseeable to those who studied their business practices and financial situation.
“I think the first thing we have to realize is where we’re going and to face it objectively,” Allison told CNSNews.com, when asked about the trillion-dollar-plus deficits the federal government has run for three straight years, the more than $13 trillion in federal debt, and the $61.9 trillion long-term shortfall the government faces (according to the analysis of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation) if the government is to pay all the benefits it has promised through entitlement programs.
Read More
Tellthetruth2010.org
Possibly related articles:
The Biggest Bank Robbery In History?
Tuesday, October 19th, 2010More Quantitative Easing = Backdoor Bailouts For The Big Banks Without Having To Go Through Congress
The U.S. Federal Reserve is getting ready to conduct another gigantic bailout of the big banks, but this time virtually nobody in the mainstream media will use the term “bailout” and the American people are going to get a lot less upset about it. You see, one lesson that was learned during the last round of bank bailouts was that the American people really, really do not like it when the U.S. Congress votes to give money to the big banks. So this time, the financial “powers that be” have figured out a way around that. Instead of going through the massive headache of dealing with the U.S. Congress, the Federal Reserve is simply going to print money and give it directly to the banks. To be more precise, the Federal Reserve is going to use a procedure known as “quantitative easing” to print money out of thin air in order to purchase large quantities of “troubled assets” (such as mortgage-backed securities) from the biggest U.S. banks at well above market price. Some are already openly wondering if this next round of quantitative easing is going to be the biggest bank robbery in history. Most Americans won’t understand these “backdoor bailouts” well enough to get upset about them, but that doesn’t mean that they won’t be just as bad (or even worse) than the last round of bailouts. In the end, all of the inflation that this new round of quantitative easing is going to cause is going to be a “hidden tax” on all of us.
Possibly related articles:
Remember when they were going to pay for our gas?
Sunday, August 15th, 2010Remember when the government was supposed to pay for our gas and mortgages? They did not tell us that would cut into food stamps. Gotta pay for that “free” health care somehow.
Democrats who reluctantly slashed a food stamp program to fund a state aid bill may have to do so again to pay for a top priority of first lady Michelle Obama.
Continue reading “Remember when they were going to pay for our gas?” »
Possibly related articles:
What Congress Bought Itself With Your $1 Billion
Thursday, July 22nd, 2010Ernie Smith
Contributor—AOL News
(July 21) — Congress requires a lot of stuff to keep itself running. Like coffee. And plane tickets. And student loan payments.
That’s the point underscored (and underscored again) by figures collated by the nonpartisan Sunlight Foundation, a nonprofit that uses technology to try to make government more transparent. In early June the organization released its latest massive data dump on the expenditures that House representatives make from their Members Representational Allowances, or MRAs. Separate from campaign accounts, which have to be filled through fundraising, these sums — ranging from $1.3 million to $1.9 million in most cases — come from taxpayers’ dollars and are meant to cover a lawmaker’s operating, rather than political, expenses. Paying for an attack ad with your MRA is a no-no, for instance.
How Congress spent your $1 billion
Possibly related articles:
Internet sales tax eyed for Arizona
Sunday, July 18th, 2010Arizona could gain as much as $708 million in 2012 by taxing more Internet, Home Shopping Network, catalog and other out-of-state sales, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
The catch: It would have to greatly simplify its sales-tax structure, with changes approved by state and federal lawmakers.
The gain: That much additional revenue would go a long way toward helping Arizona tackle its deficit, which is estimated to range this year from $368 million to $1.3 billion, and could enable the state to reinstate services and planned projects.
It also would help “brick-and-mortar” retailers that invest in Arizona and provide jobs but have to charge sales taxes, putting them at a disadvantage against “remote” or out-of-state retailers that don’t.
Possibly related articles:
Tea Party Crasher
Thursday, June 17th, 2010Americans agreeable that BP should pay.
Wednesday, June 16th, 2010President Obama in his Oval Office address to the nation Tuesday night said BP is responsible not just for the environmental clean-up from the massive Gulf oil leak but also must “compensate the workers and business owners who have been harmed as a result of [the] company’s recklessness.” He is expected to repeat that message in a meeting with top BP officials today.
Sixty-nine percent (69%) of Americans agree that the oil companies involved with the Gulf leak should be required to pay back everyone who lost income because of the oil spill, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. Just 17% disagree, and 14% more are not sure.
Continue reading “Americans agreeable that BP should pay.” »
Possibly related articles:
Maricopa County Board of Supervisors votes to raise your property taxes
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010$2.3 bil county budget gets tentative OK,
The Arizona Republic, by Yvonne Wingett,
May 30, 2010
The county increased spending by $56 million, raised the property tax rate by 6%, and Budget Director Chris Bradley says we will see a reduction in our tax bills. Magic?
Read More
Proposition 13 Arizona
Possibly related articles:
Maricopa Community Colleges vote to raise your property taxes
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010May 7, 2010 – Board members Donald Campbell, Debra Pearson and board president Randolph Lumm voted for the potential tax increase, and Colleen Clark and Jerry Walker voted against it.
Possibly related articles:
State may shift more expenses to property taxes
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010Deal on State Budget is Elusive,
The Arizona Republic, by Mary Jo Pitzl,
March 4, 2010
County governments say proposed state budget would push $120.9 million onto them – most likely at the expense of property owners who would face higher taxes.
Loading ...
