One simple fact proves the latest Biden tax hike is baseless class warfare
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Joe Biden was elected on promises of moderation and "unity," but he has wasted no time early in his presidency advancing multiple huge tax hikes. The latest example is the White House's plan almost to double the top capital gains tax rate, the tax applied on investment growth when assets are sold.
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Economists warn this hike would hurt the economy and reduce investment in small businesses. But economic downsides from taxation are nothing new. What differentiates Biden's latest tax push is that it would punish investors without actually raising much tax revenue. You know, the ostensible purpose of taxation.
Here's why: Past a certain point, higher tax rates don't necessarily guarantee more total tax revenue because peoples' behavior changes in response. For example, a 10% income tax will always raise more revenue than a 100% income tax because no one would work if they had to give up their entire paycheck to Uncle Sam.
In expanding the top capital gains rate to 43.8%, Biden would actually far exceed the capital gains tax rate that raises the most revenue. According to the Tax Policy Center and Congress's Joint Committee on Taxation, the revenue-maximizing capital gains tax rate is closer to 28%.
That's right: Biden wants to raise taxes far beyond the rate at which they raise the most revenue.
"Tax rates above the revenue-maximizing rate are punitive: The government is giving up revenue simply to punish the rich," economist and former Federal Reserve governor Lawrence B. Lindsey explains in the Wall Street Journal.
"It is shocking that this policy got past the economists in the administration, many of whom have had long and distinguished careers," Lindsey continues. "The Biden administration is blowing up one of the key concepts that has united the economics profession: maximizing social welfare. It now believes in taxation purely as a form of punishment and is even willing to sacrifice revenue to carry it out."
At this point, the Biden administration is pushing tax policy that prioritizes punishing success and antagonizing the successful even if it means less government revenue. Raising capital gains taxes this high is the definition of a "lose-lose" scenario.
With this reality in mind, Biden's latest move looks like a stark departure from his "moderate" facade. When it comes to tax policy, a Bernie Sanders-esque class warfare mentality is seemingly driving this White House.
Brad Polumbo (@Brad_Polumbo) is a Washington Examiner contributor and host of the Breaking Boundaries podcast.
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This article does not mention that the high rate kicks in only if you make over $1 million/year. This means it affects 0.3% of earners. So this affects only the super rich. You know, the people who use all kinds of dodges like carried interest and stock buy backs to shield massive amounts of income from reasonable taxation. The average small business owner in the US earns about $75K. All of the 'facts' and 'figures' about the correct rate for capital gains are irrelevant bullshit.
Like so many things, this is projection. The limitation on the SALT deduction was done to punish Democratic states, so Democrats must be doing this for the same reason. Nope. Democrats actually care about people's situation and work continuously to try and improve it. Republicans, on the other hand, would have knocked 20 million working class Americans off healthcare were it not for McCain having a conscience.
Yeah, having the top 0.3% to pay more than 23.8% Federal tax on their income, like the rest of us, is class warfare. Republicans are full of shit.
If it wasn't so pathetic, i'd find it humorous. Working class played Republicans always in lock step defending the "uber" rich, as they can't 'Lift" themselves but barely on average, as they vote and back policies against their own interests, while appearing to have some, but too blind to see they have been played, and not much work was required to obtain a result certain wons had desired. It's almost as if, if told to jump off that cliff, they would, yet, one not need to jump off a cliff to see and read the Cliff Notes, as they are in the big Red Dogs journal, omitted nocturnal as they remain in the dark, smell gas , and enlighten that spark, culling those heard while not aloud, cause immunity is herd disavowed due to a denial in science, class, and the general fck you, cause you can kiss my ass if you think i care about US wherein, it might convince me it is a slight inconvenience as i will not have such an absurdity affect my immune eye heard a T, just the other day when i talked with so many who will be refusing to enlighten, cause the Con Fuse has already bin lit and the fix is broken, as from words herd spoken, many are chokin an that Bwhich denial cannot asphyxiate all that is wrong when people lean far right and wiggle their nose and ears at science based on baseless fears, that were turned by those that steers the bullship into the rocks grown and thrown out the door with the bathwater odf these glass houses housing many panes, asz the babies are crying while science denying, cause their class was dismissed, and most were already a little tardy, as they are early lately, cause their absent minds prove none to soon to see the lunacy of the lunars eclipsed due to no enlightenmeant for they, that contrive their most important decisions to be cut from incisions of the continuing divisions on social diseased media matters, cause with all this horse shit, there will be splatters, butt wipes do not matters when it Depends on the means to their booked ends, cause a message of ignorance ruling dowst do descends peep holes looking for a way up and out, and sheltering the richest is a pour not Kool of Aid for those who already a system played, yet, enough not said, but, right now outta here and off to bed, as i live the dream, of working to support a tiny fraction of US, who've bought and paid their way to stay inn the Lobbyists tristam and taught to see how those so tender try and cut those that meet inn the lobby to smooth the rough patch sanded just fine for those who wrote the Laws designed to shield their fat monetary asses, yet the working class GOP pretend to not see the difference in classes, perhaps, a new pear of Glasses...
Cherry Pickin knows
Well i would consider you to be the expert. I haven't read up on any of this, so 'i'll not comment yet, but, i will STILL pose the question to you, who has been easier on the wealthy, Dems or the GOP ?
THEY'RE NOT. You're probably talking about the elimination of the SALT cap. To get into the top 3% of earners, you have to make $200K. The alternative minimum tax reduces/eliminates the SALT deduction for about 3.5% of the top earners. So, the SALT tax helps out people living in high cost/income states, and keeps the money in-state for better local management of tax revenues -- something conservatives are always saying we should do. Perhaps someone making $200K in your state is wealthy, not in mine where the average home price is $450K.
The problem with your 'facts' is that they never seem to take into account the Alternative Minimum Tax. This second calculation of your taxes starts phasing out your deductions at about $500K for individuals and $1M for couples. So, like the increase in the capital gains tax, which almost doubles the capital gains taxes for people making over $1M, high income earners lose the benefits of the SALT deduction.
Also from taxfoundation.org:
If you think that Republicans would actually hurt the rich, think again. I saw small increase when TCJA happened, probably because the AMT no longer affected me when the cap was raised. I prefer the old system because it kept more money in my state. We only see about 43 cents on the dollar returned, so the SALT deduction helped ameliorate that.
Because it actually does hurt regular people in the high cost states. Duh...
You are now complaining that Biden is both cutting and increasing taxes on the wealthy.
Then how do you explain this article of yours?
"Baseless Class Warfare," huh?
Yeah. Sure. Try Supply Side Economics on for size. See how that fits.