Guest Post by Michael Snyder
The left wants to raise your taxes, and most Americans are okay with that. I was shocked by the numbers that I am about to share with you, and I think that you will be shocked too. Once upon a time, being labeled as a “tax and spend liberal” was one of the worst things that could happen to a politician. During the presidential election of 1984, Walter Mondale was very honest about the fact that he wanted to raise taxes on the American people, and Ronald Reagan absolutely crushed him with that. In the end, it was one of the greatest election night landslides in history. But this time around we could potentially see the opposite. If things go badly for Trump, we could actually see a “tax and spend liberal” turn the map mostly blue in 2020. I know that sounds very, very strange, but the latest poll numbers show that the American people strongly support raising taxes on the wealthy.
For example, the most recent Politico poll found that 76 percent of registered voters believe that taxes should be raised on the richest Americans…
Surveys are showing overwhelming support for raising taxes on top earners, including a new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll released Monday that found 76 percent of registered voters believe the wealthiest Americans should pay more in taxes. A recent Fox News survey showed that 70 percent of Americans favor raising taxes on those earning over $10 million — including 54 percent of Republicans.
Those numbers are absolutely overwhelming.
When even a Fox News survey shows that most Republicans want higher taxes, then you know that something has dramatically changed.
And this high level of support for tax increases persists even when voters are asked about specific proposals from Democrats on the far left. If you can believe it, 59 percent of Americans are even in favor of AOC’s proposal to raise the highest marginal tax rate to 70 percent…
A plan from first-term Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) to slap a 70 percent marginal rate on income earned over $10 million clocked in at 59 percent support in a recent Hill/HarrisX poll.
The new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll, conducted Feb. 1-2, found that 61 percent favor a proposal like the “wealth tax” recently laid out by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) that would levy a 2 percent tax on those with a net worth over $50 million and 3 percent on those worth over $1 billion. Just 20 percent opposed the idea. The poll surveyed 1,993 registered voters and carries a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percent.
To me, voting for politicians that unashamedly want higher taxes is kind of like voting for more root canals or more telemarketing calls during dinner.
But right now the poll numbers clearly show that the left is winning the battle for hearts and minds, and that is a huge problem for the Republican Party.
Today, many Democrats work very hard to fight for their agenda in the court of popular opinion, but meanwhile most Republicans in Congress are simply “seat fillers” that make absolutely no effort to educate the public. This is something that must change if Republicans hope to ever turn things around.
So why do Democrats want higher taxes?
Well, the primary reason they need higher taxes is to pay for multi-trillion dollar programs such as the “Green New Deal” and “Medicare For All”.
In particular, the “Green New Deal” would take an insane amount of money to implement. Here is a summary of some of the craziest proposals in the “Green New Deal” that was put together by Michael Palicz…
- Rebuild every single building in the U.S.
“Upgrade or replace every building in US for state-of-the-art energy efficiency.”
- Will end all traditional forms of energy in the next ten years.
The Green New Deal is “a 10-year plan to mobilize every aspect of American society at a scale not seen since World War 2 to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.”
- Plans to ban nuclear energy within 10 years if possible.
“It’s unclear if we will be able to decommission every nuclear plant within 10 years, but the plan is to transition off of nuclear and all fossil fuels as soon as possible.”
- Build trains across oceans and end all air travel!
“Build out highspeed rail at a scale where air travel stops becoming necessary”.
- Don’t invest in new technology of Carbon Capture and Storage, just plant trees instead!
“We believe the right way to capture carbon is to plant trees and restore our natural ecosystems. CCUS technology to date has not proven effective.”
- Mandates all new jobs be unionized.
“Ensure that all GND jobs are union jobs that pay prevailing wages and hire local.”
Nobody knows for sure what all of that will cost, but needless to say the total would be in the trillions of dollars.
But most Americans are not in favor of higher taxes on the wealthy because they want to see such radical proposals come to fruition.
Rather, they like the idea of higher taxes because they think somehow they will get some goodies out of it.
In recent years, politicians on the far left have gotten a lot of mileage out of turning all of our basic needs into “rights”. They have been boldly declaring that all Americans should have a “right” to housing, health care and a basic college education even if they don’t want to work for those things.
But if you are “entitled” to something, then that means that somebody else has to pay for it.
And most Americans are in favor of that concept until it becomes their turn to pay.
The Babylon Bee is a satire website, and their recent article about taxes was quite humorous…
Americans all over the country suggested they are OK with a majority of the people voting to take a minority of the people’s money, as long as they are not part of that minority.
“I am a very generous person, so I believe everyone else needs to pay their fair share,” said Lyle Hartright of Maine. “Everyone that isn’t me, I mean.”
“These are stunning results,” said one analyst. “We always believed that Americans were generous, but we never knew how generous. To offer to raise taxes to 70% or more on other people just goes to show how much compassion people have.”
America has already traveled quite far down the road toward socialism, and instead of reversing course, it looks like the American people want to pick up the pace.
But all we have to do to see where that road leads is to look at Venezuela. Unfortunately, most Americans are not making that connection at this point.
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What Liberals fail to understand is the wealthy ALLREADY pay more than their fair share (whatever that is) in taxes due to the graduated scale in the income tax code. What I think would be the best for everybody is a FLAT RATE TAX WITH NO DEDUCTIONS. Unfortunately, not enough politicians seem interested in passing such a tax code.
The best for actual Americans might be no income tax at all.
I really don’t find it hard to believe that we could get along fine with 90% less Federal government.
Trump offers socialism for the rich, capitalism for everyone else.
To a conservative mind, socialism is getting something for nothing. Yet this is what the president promotes for the wealthy.
“America will never be a socialist country,” Donald Trump declared in his State of the Union address. Someone should alert Trump that America is now a hotbed of socialism. But it is socialism for the rich. Everyone else is treated to harsh capitalism.
In the conservative mind, socialism means getting something for doing nothing. That pretty much describes the $21bn saved by the nation’s largest banks last year thanks to Trump’s tax cuts, some of which went into massive bonuses for bank executives. On the other hand, more than 4,000 lower-level bank employees got a big dose of harsh capitalism.They lost their jobs.
Banks that are too big to fail – courtesy of the 2008 bank bailout – enjoy a hidden subsidy of some $83bn a year, because creditors facing less risk accept lower interest on deposits and loans. Last year, Wall Street’s bonus pool was $31.4bn. Take away the hidden subsidy and the bonus pool disappears.
Under socialism for the rich, you can screw up big time and still reap big rewards
Trump is promoting socialism for the rich and harsh capitalism for everyone else in other ways. GM has got more than $600m in federal contracts, plus $500m in tax breaks. Some of this has gone into the pockets of GM executives. Chairman and CEO Mary Barra raked in almost $22m in total compensation in 2017 alone.
Ned – you are a fucking moron. You say getting a tax reduction is a savings. Bullfuckingshit, you fucking imbecile. It means you get to keep more of what is actually yours to begin with. You totally ignore the fact that it is now, and has always been, a spending issue, not a tax issue.
You talk about creditors receiving less interest on deposits and loans. Do me a favor, and make up your fucking mind. Less interest on loans is, what do you call it – oh, right – a great thing if you are taking out a loan. And if banks pay less interest on deposits, and get less interest on loans, are they not issues that balance out, at least to some extent? That i a rhetorical question.
How is GM getting Federal contracts socialism? You do not say. Were the tenders put out, and the business won? You do not say. What are the tax breaks? You do not say. But I looked it up. The breaks you refer to are seemingly the ability to carry losses forward to offset profits. Yo cal that a tax break – bullshit. It is simple fairness to shareholders. Seems right to me. You want the fucking companies – which means the shaeholders – to carry losses, but get taxed fully in years they make a profits, before they can recover their lost capital. Seems to me that taxes should apply to total accumulated profits, and not used to gouge a company who burn investor capital via losses for years. And you call being allowed to recoup losses before tax kicks in a “tax break”. You are a fucking halfwit.
And the entire idea of “tax break” is bullshit. The words implicitly imply that taxes are a great and wonderful thing, and that someone is not paying their fair share, and that profits are not owned by those that make them, but instead are rightfully the property of the government, who magnanimously allows you to retain some small portion of it. Taxes are theft, pure and simple, especially when the tax is being used to redistribute profits from those earning them to those that have not done one damn thing to earn it themselves.
You bitch about how much someone makes. The shareholders determine that. Like it has anything to do with socialism. Envious much? Personally, I think these CEOs are overpaid, and I am happy to vote my shares in such a way as to reduce their pay. But the majority of shareholders disagree with me.
You have brought a new level of stupid to the site. Don’t you have a Socialists R s meeting to attend somewhere? You clearly are parroting socialist ideas, and I suspect have cut and paste this stupid-ass comment from your Comrades Weekly magazine.
There’s a difference between income` taxes and capital gains taxes, and its probably a good idea to see which tax these millionaires and billionaires pay.
No tax is a good tax in my opinion.
There are people who agree the tax code is written the way it is for the rich and powerful and friends of the rich and powerful. And then they would turn right around and say you are envious.
?These are the same pollsters that still think Hillary is going to win the last election.
OP, you don’t work for FiveThirtyEight do you.
What’s the surprise Michael? About half of people pay no taxes at all. The wealthiest of the tax paying class are die-hard lefty supporters. Are we supposed to feel badly about the bezos’ and rubins who support the killery’s and warren’s getting hosed on taxes? I don’t think so. They support efforts that bend the rules to make them filthy rich while the rest of us barely eke by. Remember TARP? Oh, but wait-there’s a moral element to the argument. It’s immoral and counterproductive for confiscatory tax rates (ANY taxes as far as I’m concerned). The constitution calls for taxes to be apportioned. Don’t make me fucking laugh. When the fuck did morals enter the equation? The Ron Paul campaigns? And how far did that go? I certainly don’t agree with them but I goddamn sure understand their logic. We’re circling the drain so it’s every man for himself.
The FEDs policies have allowed the money flow to accumulate to the top 1% and thrown granny under the bus and screwed savers. Is anybody surprised there is a backlash?
PLUTOCRACY
Rule by the rich.
I always hear how the Fed “screwed savers” but how can that be when the majority don’t even have $1000 put away for an emergency or retirement. Where is this ocean of savers?
Does it really matter the amount people have in savings? It’s the principle. I didn’t know you had to have millions of dollars in the bank to get screwed.
I get your point though.
Nickle,
My Father retired in 1990 (PA coal miner – NJ factory worker, my Mother never worked). Both remembered the Depression as children (I think my Dad was a little traumatized by it) and lived extremely modest lifestyles well under their modest means, no debt (paid their house off) and were savers, savers, savers.
My Dad also didn’t trust banks and I think he always kept a healthy stash of cash well hidden at home.
I was shocked when I found out how much they had saved on what my Dad made but also amazed on how much they lived on. Interest was a big deal to them. My Mother managed the money and was razor sharp on spending (or not spending I didn’t eat in a restaurant until I was 17 and I paid for that) budgeting and moving their money around to put it to work. After retirement my Dad got a part time Security Guard job three 2nd shifts a week for what he called, grandchildren spending money.
Once the FED starting grinding down people like my parents who would never gamble with stocks, who never had a 401k, never did or would ever consider the market (I made a killing in the 90’s) the principle of their life long savings starting shrinking year after year after year.
My Dad went home in 2009 and after a good stand on her own for three years eventually my Mom had to sell the house, partly because of the shrinking principle and partly because of advancing frailty. She spends 10 months a year with my sister and 2 with me and we take in my Father in law another three months. I was raised in a three generation home (most of the time) and love that family lifestyle.
I think there are millions of older American SAVERS who were squeezed this way by the FED. Wall Street was fed by the FED at the expense of the coal miners and factory workers. Many were driven into the Stock Market and many got their clock’s cleaned in 2008 and never recovered, I have met them.
That’s my two American Eagles
No, most Americans are NOT in favor of the government raising THEIR taxes. They are in favor of the government raising SOMEONE ELSE’S TAXES. BIG DIFFERENCE. The current income tax began with the promise that “only millionaires” would have to pay. And indeed it started that way. Now look. Once the government realizes how little income even a 70% tax would generate, and how much MORE they spent while waiting for the windfall to come in, they will simply start lowering the income bar.
It is always about spending.
It is always about government.
Theft is IMMORAL, regardless of who commits the act or for what reason.
Taxation is theft, and a taxation on income is slavery to the government.
Yes indeed. We Americans are for the other guy paying more taxes. God said not to covet. We are breaking the law and we will pay the price.
That’s it exactly, envy and greed.
Which is why it wasn’t in the Constitution to begin with.
do you guys remember the days b4 the irs had online filing,on april 15th the main regional post office in every area would usually have extended hours so late filers could get their return postmarked & traffic would backup for miles?
our local libertarian party chapter would always go out to the main post office here in the tampa area,which is at tampa intl airport,and pass out “million dollar bills”,which was an oversized currency shaped handbill with facts about govt spending–
it would blow your minds how many people would refuse to take one or would get up in our faces about how govt was not spending enough–
the #s in these polls are slightly higher then i would expect to see but they are not really surprising–
We used to have people scream at us from their cars and call us “communists” or say “get a job” when we did the same every year in Riverside, CA. Americans are a truly fucking stupid bunch.
liberty,
i bet i personally passed out 4-5,000 of those 1m bills & i don’t believe we ever got a single recruit–
did you ever have irs people eff w/you,we did?
cops & airport officials would try to make us go to the designated protest zone & we often had an atty w/us to bluff them & cite laws,only the last year did we have to be in a protest zone,which meant no literature being passed out–
The Deliberate Dumbing Down of America- Charlotte Iserbyt. This lady worked under Ronald Reagan in the Nat’l Dept. of Ed……..most articulate 90+ year old you’ll ever hear.
annuit coeptis novus ordo seclorum- it is NOT an accident !!
Michael have you not figured out no one gives a shit about you and your blog ever since you ranked 13th out of 15 trying to get on the goobermint dole?
CORPORATE WELFARE:
In the corporate welfare system, the more money and assets you have, the more government assistance you get. Conversely, social welfare programs are set up so that the more money and assets you have, the less government assistance you get.
Warren Buffett stated that he only paid 19% of his income for 2006 ($48.1 million) in total federal taxes (due to their being from dividends & capital gains), while his employees paid 33% of theirs, despite making much less money. “How can this be fair?” Buffett asked, regarding how little he pays in taxes compared to his employees. “How can this be right?” He also added:
“There’s class warfare, all right, but it’s my class, the rich class, that’s making war, and we’re winning.”
That Buffett bullshit was thoroughly debunked. The numbers are nothing like what he said. You have the year wrong.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2013/10/23/warren-buffetts-actual-tax-rate-is-31-while-his-office-workers-pay-21/#304c44113279
Undebunked!
Warren Buffett’s Nifty Tax Loophole
https://www.barrons.com/articles/warren-buffetts-nifty-tax-loophole-1428726092
These loopholes are unavailable to wage earning secretaries. And this is even before the 2018 tax cuts.
Plus even if the “paid for by the rich” written article you cited were true, it is dated 10-13, before the approximately 40% corporate tax cuts went into effect in 2018. So now it is 40% less than previous.
Billionaire Warren Buffett: ‘I don’t need a tax cut’ in a society with so much inequality
https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/04/billionaire-warren-buffett-i-dont-need-a-tax-cut.html
And then there’s this!!!
26 top American corporations paid no federal income tax from ’08 to ’12 – report
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/markets/2016/03/07/27-giant-profitable-companies-paid-no-taxes/81399094/
And that was before the 2018 tax cuts went into effect.
Let me see you spin another tale Slick.
Like it or not, good or bad, right or wrong, when wealth/income inequality gets bad enough….bad. shit. happens.
A TBP regular has said many times…”It’s only yours if you can keep/defend it”. Defend against the majority wanting to tax the shit out of the rich.
Fuk taxes and fuk the wealthy elite, I’m in favor of yellow vests and pitchforks.
BL,
Did you see this on another thread.
I sent him my e-mail, haven’t heard back yet.
I’ll get out in the streets with the right people, won’t be my first rodeo.
ORGANIZING A NATIONAL MOVEMENT
Published on Jan 31, 2019
Starting a National Movement to take down the Deep State. Join me
Send me at [email protected] an email titled with your Congressional District number (State and number e.g. CA37, OK01, FL13. Let me know if you will coordinate and what email address I should use to send people to you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzycFl8Jt5I
Mark, what’s that about…not getting a response?
Donkey,
Yea, no response yet…I was curious. Evidently he was getting bombarded with e-mails.
I’ll stay with it. I thought forming American NEON VEST protests by Congressional district was an interesting idea.
I’ll see where it goes, if anywhere.
Mark- That looks a little too contrived by The Company for me. The problem here in the USA!USA!USA! is people join the opposition’s BS co-opted shills to protest, WE DON’T NEED NO NATIONAL SPOKESMAN/LEADER/PRE-FORMED GROUP, no sectioned and formed MCD burger protest run by the elites for me Mark.
All we need is UNITY and backbone.
BL,
It could be? Or not? I’m not going to judge it until I know more.
The guy starting it seems legit in his motives. Time will tell.
“All we need is UNITY and backbone.”
I agree maybe the guy trying to plant these seeds to grow some grass roots is hoping to do just that. To early and not enough known to write off…yet.
Donkey, BL,
Here is his latest, I would think you both would agree with much of what he says.
NEON VESTS REDUX
Seething Frog
Published on Feb 10, 2019
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86aGHWbq3XY
Ann Barnhardt said “it’s only yours if you can stand in front of it with an AR-15.”
People had better realize that higher earners are defined as those with an adjusted gross income of $50,000. Those millionaires and billionaires have purchased carve outs from the politicians.
Good video from Campus Reform – Students All About Ocasio-Cortez’s New Green Deal Until Finding Out What’s In It
On top of that, ironically, their answers show they’re against giving money to people who don’t contribute and are not willing to do anything, but they support welfare programs.
https://www.campusreform.org/?ID=11859
The soak-the-rich mantra is easy to play against the billionaires like Mark Zuckerfucker and Jeff Beezlebub, and who wouldn’t like to take them two down a peg or three. What I find more concerning is that a lot of people want to use tax code to rape their direct supervisors at work all the way up the ladder.
Millennials are known for not wanting to work their way up. It’s not fair that the middle-manager is making six figures and has more weeks of vacation. He doesn’t have student loans to pay. I work way harder than he does!
Meanwhile that middle-manager is complaining that it’s not fair the VP gets a 50% annual bonus and company car. He’s not struggling to pay a mortgage and child care. His kids go to private colleges. I work way harder than he does!
And that VP is saying it’s not fair that the C-Suite guys get millions of dollars and stock options to sit on their yachts or Aspen lodge and smoke cigars. I work way harder than they do!
Don’t doubt me on this. It’s quietly being grumbled about in offices all across the country.