Erika Johnsen @ Hot Air:
And I quote:
But as I’ve said before, we can’t just cut our way to prosperity. If we’re serious about reducing the deficit, we have to combine spending cuts with revenue. And that means asking the wealthiest Americans to pay a little more in taxes. … That’s how we can reduce the deficit while still making the investments we need to build a strong middle class and a strong economy. …
Now, already, I’ve put forward a detailed plan that allows us to make these investments while reducing our deficit by $4 trillion over the next decade. I want to be clear: I’m not wedded to every detail of my plan. I’m open to compromise. I’m open to new ideas. I’m committed to solving our fiscal challenges.
But I refuse to accept any approach that isn’t balanced. I am not going to ask students and seniors and middle-class families to pay down the entire deficit while people like me making over $250,000 aren’t asked to pay a dime more in taxes.
Yes, by all means, let’s be serious — and acknowledge that tax hikes on the wealthiest among us is not going to accomplish anything even remotely meaningful in terms of long-term deficit reduction. Talking about how expensive the two wars have been and ginning up populist resentments (Obama likes to add the “rich people like me” bit to fend off claims of class-warmongering, but the “fairness” implication is of course still there) while consistently failing to produce any concrete plans except on how the government can spend more money, is not a solution. The hit on economic growth that will come at the cost of steepening our already graduated income tax is a much less effective way of increasing revenue than the lowered taxes that would allow the economy to grow at a more robust rate and bring more people into the middle and upper tax brackets (and with the president’s proposed arrangements, we can count on more of the same economic stagnation that only adds people to the food stamp/unemployment benefits/etcetera welfare rolls and deepens our fiscal woe).
As Conn Carroll aptly reminds us, sure, the Congressional Budget Office has projected that allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire for the wealthy could bring in as much as $824 billion over ten years (which, given that it’s from the CBO, I’d wager is a somewhat rosy estimate). But when you put that in the context of, oh yeah, Obama’s been running up trillion-dollar deficits every year of his presidency, you can see what a hugely insurmountable problem this is.
Obama’s shown what he wants to do: spend more.
The budget deficit rose in October, the first month of fiscal year 2013.
$42 billion more in outlays over a year ago.
And…
$120 billion more than what Obama’s Treasury took in.
ALL of the tax hikes on ”the rich” (really well-to-do working families, not the IDLE rich) comes to less than that for each YEAR!
Way less than that!
$6.3 billion in higher taxes per month is all Obama can expect from ruining the incentive of the working professional families as well as the ”mom&pop” businesses.
Not even a drop in the bucket or dust on the scales!
So, why does Obama blindly continue to push this useless idea?
He hinted at it the last week of his campaign: REVENGE.
Dinesh D-Sousa’s thesis was that Obama hates the ”colonialists.”
And in Obama’s self-congratulations’ speech he mentioned he thought of the USA as a nation full of ex-colonists (who need their come-uppence.)
Who cares? Where’s my free “stuff”?!?
@Nan G: #1,
He can knock himself out raising taxes “on the rich,” but as you point out, it will make little difference, however, . . .
Yes, half of all small businesses are going to get hit hard, but what will make this mess worse is the fact that the new normal is a ‘stagnant economy,’ for the foreseeable future (and that is a positive scenario). Without growth, there will be a reduction in receivables to a continually growing government bureaucracy – at least for 4 more years. No one in Washington seems determined to take the necessary serious action on the growth of government and on the growth of the deficit.
@johngalt: You and most people like you make to much money and can afford to buy it on your own—like food.
So, again, when does it end? Pay a little more this year, pay “a little” more next year…pay pay pay pay more more more more…..When does it end????
Even better [or worse]
Who will they blame next? What ‘fairness’ fervor are we in for next? Not fair…Not fair NOT FAIR!!!
Is America made up of 51 Million 7 year olds? Or is that a unfair question?
@Liberal1 (Objectivity): Pointless as usual.
@Liberal1 (Objectivity): Tell us about yourself Liberal 1. Do you tythe? Who do you contribute to> What kind of work do you do or do or are you on the government teat?
Liberal1 is getting less and less coherent with every post.
Or am I the only one who sees that?
Maybe he needs his meds adjusted again.
@Liberal1 (Objectivity):
Yeah, because we work. We actually paid attention is school, furthered our education in trade or college, and found jobs. But we’re tired now. Time to enjoy the good life and the free stuff.
Lesson for the Day:
The Food Stamp Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is actually proud of the fact it is distributing the greatest amount of free meals and food stamps ever.
Meanwhile, the National Park Service, administered by the US Department of the Interior, asks us to “Please Do Not Feed the Animals”.
Their stated reason for the policy is because the animals will grow dependent on handouts and will not learn to take care of themselves. This ends today’s lesson.
@Liberal1 (Objectivity):
It’s not the money that I make, Lib1. It’s that I accepted responsibility of my own life, without looking for the handouts, or gaming the system, or blaming others because I haven’t been “lucky”.
Many of the union workers (millwrights, boilermakers, pipefitters, carpenters, etc.) that I work beside during outages at the power plant I work at have learned to “game the system”. They work roughly half the year, and although they work long hours then they still work less than I do. Then they take off half the year, receiving unemployment benefits through their union halls and government. At the end of the year, they end up owing little in taxes, but still bringing home roughly what I bring home. The difference is that I’ve worked the full year. And you and I pay for them to be able to do this.
The local teachers average what I make at the end of the year, but they work 3-4 months less than I do, and when they do work, it’s for way less hours than I do. And their medical, dental, and retirement benefits are mostly paid for by the county, whereas I am paying half of my medical and dental, and nearly all of my retirement benefits. And you and I pay for them to be able to enjoy pay and benefits most people will never reach.
I have lost count of the times I have gone to the grocery store to pick up something for dinner, never too expensive or extravagant, and wait in line behind people with groceries of steak and shrimp, the organic “artisan” salad mixes, the expensive “fresh” pastas in the refrigerated section, the brand name chips and sodas, the expensive all-beef hotdogs(to my generic ones), etc., etc., etc. And then they pay for it with the government EBT “food stamp” card. They eat better than I do, and I work more than them, based on them having that card. And you and i pay for them to be able to do so. And then walking out to the parking lot, these people are getting into nearly brand new vehicles while I hop into my 27 year old truck, or 7 year old paid for Toyota.
And then there are the freeloaders and those who enjoy playing the grasshopper to our ant. The people who claim to want to work, but never can find it, even as you drive down the road and see the signs at every other business about hiring. These are the people that I truly despise, as a group, and while you can find references here and there to people truly needing a helping hand up, they are the exception, rather than the rule. Free meals. Free roofs over their heads. Free utilities. And you and I pay for them to dance their carefree ways away, while we work the long hours responsibly.
The point is, Lib1, that there are plenty of people playing that grasshopper to our ant, but even that isn’t accurate, because the grasshopper never received his bounty during his care-free days from the hard work the ants were engaged in. It’s one thing to have compassion for someone who is in a bind, or going through a rough patch, and extend a helping hand. It’s quite another when their is an entire industry created by politicians and those who want their free “stuff” who keep sticking those of us with responsibility with the bills.
@Aqua: Well, we are feeding the Black Panthers and the white rabbits. Someone contact the division of wild life!
I have yet to receive my Skittles pooping unicorn obama promised! >:(
And that seems to be Lib1’s problem.
The same as I’m seeing all around here in this liberal bastion.
People were expecting an uptick in freebies as soon as Obama got 4 more years.
They are getting pretty ugly about their lot under him.
Boy!
They JUST voted for him, too!
People who haven’t been given free phones expect to get one NOW!!!
People are hearing that other Obama supporters merely have to claim their food spoiled (SANDY victims) and they get more food stamps….so they complain about rotten food here.
People hear about free gasoline (again SANDY victims) and want free gas here, too.
And so on.
One lady was going on and on about her meds needing adjusting, and she wanted them FREE and NOW!
They are going to learn the hard way there is no such thing as free.
I have spoken with quite a few blue state retirees who moved to FL because in some places there there, they can get their generic meds at no cost.
Let’s see how long that lasts.
It’s not about reducing the deficit; it’s about turning the screw just a little tighter. If the economy improves, the mold is cast (just think how much better the recovery could be if we really soak the rich b@stards!) If the economy doesn’t improve, maybe the tax increase wasn’t large enough.
Either way, it’s a win for Obama.
if they want to cut revenues, let them cut on them first to set a good will example,
after all they are the one who spend beginning with OBAMA SPENDING SPREES,
HE cannot stop himself from SPENDING, HE TAKE IT AS HIS OWN MONEY
OR HE COULD NOT CARE LESS ABOUT AMERICANS,
OR he want to revenge against the AMERICA WHICH HE HAVE NOT PROVE TO BELONG TO YET,
or he hate AMERICANS for not liking his MUSLIM BROTHER,
any one of it or more, you would have to probe his mind,
we are beginning to know more what make him tick, just a little bit here and there,
when he lose his cool, he is giving us some clues,
is that why he doesn’t give to many press conferences.