Home > Plutonomy, taxes > Republican tax plans to date in one convenient graphic

Republican tax plans to date in one convenient graphic

January 8, 2012 Leave a comment Go to comments

from David Ruccio

Kevin Drum has collected charts showing all the Republican tax plans to date in one convenient graphic.

It’s really pretty spectacular seeing them all together like this. It’s not just the amount of pandering to the super-rich that’s so breathtaking, it’s the lockstep unanimity. At all costs, every single Republican candidate knows that he has to promise the ultra-wealthy a huge tax break as the price of staying in the race. This, ladies and gentlemen, is the modern Republican Party in a nutshell. 

The Tax Policy Center recently released its formal analysis of Mitt Romney’s tax plan (which is discussed by Linda Beale) and provided a preliminary analysis of the tax agenda of flavor-of-the-day Rick Santorum.

We all know what the Republican tax policy looks like. The real question is, what’s their agenda for the pretax U.S. economy, where the real inequalities in the distribution of income and wealth are generated?

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Categories: Plutonomy, taxes
  1. Fred Foldvary
    January 8, 2012 at 6:14 pm | #1
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    What about Ron Paul’s tax policy?

  2. Cristi C
    January 9, 2012 at 10:33 pm | #2
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    I would not mind these tax advantages for the rich. IF AND ONLY IF they would not hide their wealth in offshore accounts. So, I think it is a right policy to reduce the % tax but put the IRS to full access to offshore accounts. Or abolish the offshores – at least make them transparent in fiscal reporting.
    It is obvious the reason to start decreasing or level the % for the rich. It is not fair to be forced to pay more than you will practically use in terms of public services: military, police, public health. At some point, your income will raise but you will not need proportionally more public emergency health or policing to justify paying the same or higher % of your income than those with smaller income.

  3. Alice
    January 10, 2012 at 9:28 am | #4
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    It would be far simpler to go back to the tax rates of the 1950s than attempt to chase every offshore tax haven. You might actually get better entrepreneurs that can survive higher tax rates than those who just “pass by”..and pay little tax (really do we need those people?)
    A sensible view sees an obvious need to redistribute away from the wealthy now (given the level of inequality).
    A cynical view also sees a need to redistribute away from the wealthy now – maybe as pay back to all those they may have fleeced or treated badly on the way eg Goldman Sachs..
    Either way raising taxes on the rwealthy to 1950s levels might just shock a few people and you may just get rid of a few leeches (hopefully from Wall Street).
    The purpose of tax is not just to implement user pays of government services (yet another neoliberal silly idea).

  4. Michael Monterey
    January 10, 2012 at 8:33 pm | #5
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    Alice, Your heart is in the right place, but your proposal is really no more practicable than the others. The rulers of the plutonomy, the Big Winners of Plutonomy, the End Game scenario of the unFree world game are not going to let such a radical change occur in their lifetimes. Why do you think they rigged the game to let themselves win? Then we also have all the Dupes to consider, about 70% percent of the population is not only clueless, they are obsessed with believing that they are not slaves, socioeconomic droids. Over 20% are Glorps, willing co-conspirators who know enough to know better, but they have no hope of changing the game. So, they try to enjoy their crumbs & perqs & not think too much nor too deeply. Many of them are either Fox News junkies or Faux Progressives with mutual funds & multiple pensions to consider.

    Furthermore, the population is growing at about the same rate that automation is eliminating jobs, which ensures exponential growth of unemployment. Short of a miracle or global doom, China’s market economy will equal and surpass the USA’s in 2016 if not sooner. The strength of the relatively healthy economies of the Southern Hemisphere + Southeast Asia + India + Germany will also surpass the USA’s economic clout. China has already matched or exceeded the USA’s talent & interest in innovation and they have all the positive & negative incentives necessary to keep innovating & developing far beyond the crippled, retarded USA. So, the inescapable conclusion is that the Big Winners of Plutonomy no longer need or care about bleeding heart Faux Liberals, sleepwalkers, the US Constitution, etc.

    The dumbing down of America worked — as planned since before the Constitution was signed and as implemented from the inception of the Fed.

    Actually, the process probably started before the rise of Babylon, but was systematically perfected from the beginning of the “Holy Roman Empire” — which was noticed by the clever and ruthlessly greedy of all other persuasions ever since. So, like, duh…..

    So, if anyone has a Real SOLUTION better than my plan, I’d love to see it. If not, you might want to check mine at The Greenbook > mm-greenbook.blogspot.com > and be sure to join the Facebook groups > Green Community Credit System & TheFREEparty

    Whatever you do or don’t do, I sincerely hope you enjoy the ride to wherever you wind up.

    • Alice
      January 11, 2012 at 10:13 am | #6
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      Michael says
      “Alice, Your heart is in the right place, but your proposal is really no more practicable than the others. The rulers of the plutonomy, the Big Winners of Plutonomy, the End Game scenario of the unFree world game are not going to let such a radical change occur in their lifetimes.”

      Actually its my head thats in the right place – re going back to the tax rates of the 1950s (plus a good shot of “you aint going anywhere” to the free movement of capital – no offshore tax havens and if they dont like it – move out.)

      Short of this sensible idea, the US will continue going down (its population is just too big not to fail) and any entrepreneurs will move anyway once they have impoverished and cannibalised their own markets in the US. Nice place to visit but you dont want to run a business where not many can buy. There is only one thing that can reverse this trend and thats government policy, but seeing as the plutocrats have a firm hold on who gets into power for the puppet show at voting time that is not likely either. Politics has been captured.

      My heart tells me that no one is going to listen to my head any time soon and they will have to be dragged to the idea of higher taxes on the wealthy and corporates (and higher regulation) kicking and screaming…and it may eventually come to that after a lot of unnecessary hardship anyway, but its the only way the US will improve, sadly.

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