GET READY!!!! The misery hasn't started yet (and you thought it was over...), but it's coming!!


The High Cost of Liberalism

Taxes too high? You ain't seen nothing yet.



By PETE DU PONT

Congress is in recess and many Americans are on vacation, but all that will end when Labor Day has passed and the House and Senate are back at work.
And that means the Europeanization of America will again be in full gear, from expanding government control and regulation of as many things as possible, to raising taxes, expanding the size of government, and reducing the choices individuals are allowed.
The Treasury reports that our country's federal debt has doubled in nine years, rising steadily, year by year, to $10.72 trillion from $5.67 trillion in 2000. Our deficit for the current year fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30, is expected to total $1.8 trillion, four times last year's figure, leaving us with a federal debt of $38,500 for every U.S. resident. Our economy is doing poorly; it will shrink about 2.6% this year. Unemployment in July reached 9.4% and will likely further increase, and tax revenues are down $353 billion over the first 10 months of this fiscal year.
So we can easily see what is just around the corner. Earlier this month Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and Larry Summers, director of the National Economic Council, opened the door, suggesting that taxes on all taxpayers will have to go up. As Stephen Moore noted in The Wall Street Journal, "it would take almost $16,000 more from every household in America to balance the budget this year." We certainly won't get to balanced budgets for decades, but substantially higher taxation seems inevitable.
All of which leads to the essential economic question: Which tax increases do the current administration and Congress intend to enact? There are more than a dozen, all of which would negatively affect our economy.
One has already been signed into law by President Obama: an increase in the tax on tobacco, to $1.01 a pack of cigarettes from 39 cents, and to as much as 40 cents a cigar from a nickel--increases of 159% and 700%, respectively. This is expected to bring in $8 billion a year. Next up is a possible increase in alcohol, beer and wine taxes, raising about another $6 billion annually, and perhaps another $5 billion a year on sugary drinks will be enacted.
Then come a series of substantial tax increases that are on the Washington agenda that, if enacted, will create real problems for our country's economy.
First, allowing the expiration of the previous Bush administration tax cuts at the end of 2010. These reductions increased government tax receipts by $785 billion (just as the Kennedy and Reagan tax cuts increased tax revenues) and gave us eight million new jobs over a 52-month period. The cuts go away if Congress does nothing, raising tax rates on the top earners will to 39.6% from 35%, and on the next-highest bracket to 36% from 33%. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that 55% of these tax increases will come from small-business income.
Next comes Rep. Charles Rangel's additional tax increases, a part of the House health-care bill. The House Ways and Means chairman calls for a 1% surtax on couples with more than $350,000 in income, 1.5% on incomes more than $500,000, and 5.4% on incomes more than $1 million. The extra tax would kick in at lower levels for unmarried taxpayers. And if promised health-care cost savings don't materialize, the surtaxes would automatically double.
The House health-care bill contains several tax increases that would hit couples earning under $250,000 a year, contrary to President Obama's promises: $8.2 billion of tax increases for people using health savings accounts or other tax-free savings to purchase over-the-counter drugs; a "Comparative Effectiveness Research Tax" of $2 billion on all private and "public option" insurance, plus up to 8% paid by employers--mostly small businesses--that don't offer health insurance. There is even a proposed tax on individuals who do not have health insurance.
Then come some other tax increases the administration has favored:
• An increased tax on American companies doing business in other countries.
• Raising or abolishing the wage cap on Social Security taxes, which would effectively convert Social Security into a welfare program.
• Reducing the tax benefit for itemized deductions like charitable contributions, which would reduce philanthropy.
And then there's the Waxman-Markey "cap and trade" bill that has passed the House and will be taken up in the Senate this fall. It would give the government total control of the production, prices, availability and use of energy and add a global energy tax to imported goods--serious American protectionism. It would shrink America's economy by $400 billion each year and cause the loss of some 2.5 million jobs. For a household of four it would cost an average of about $3,000 a year. By 2035 the total family annual increased cost would be $4,600 for power, food, supplies, gasoline and transportation.
All told, the administration and Congress are pushing massive tax increases. Without a specific proposal we don't know how much taxes would go up if the Social Security ceiling is raised, but add the others up and we see up to $200 billion--and it could well be much more--in annual tax increases on businesses, individuals and the overall economy, which is already in recession.
The Wall Street Journal's Daniel Henninger observes that "to an independent voter or moderate Democrat, President Everyman is starting to look like a salesman for the superstate." These many proposed tax increases reinforce the point. They not only would be economically damaging, but chart a very scary course for our country.

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You haven't countered nothing, because the points you made are not valid, you are basing your counter on information you don't understand, regardless the accuracy of the information, because it does not state what you are saying.. (Brazko)

The Europeanization of America - sounds great to me! I welcome it with open arms.

And for the record, potentiality is not dictated by European history. How limiting. We can do things differently Cracker. We're not confided by their processes and policies.

If only...... the MAIN reason why EU looks anywhere near attractive (it's a thin veneer easily scratched), is because of the giant dynamo across the Atlantic doing all the heavy lifting economically. Once that dynamo is silenced....a cold wind is surely gonna blow right over the EU. It's no coincidence that the EU has expressed real concern over Obama's spending. WE ARE THE GOLDEN GOOSE TO THEM. They are scared..,,, and they should be.

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You haven't countered nothing, because the points you made are not valid, you are basing your counter on information you don't understand, regardless the accuracy of the information, because it does not state what you are saying.. (Brazko)

Blasphemy.

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"If you wanna win, CHEAT! If you lose, start a FIGHT!" - very wise man

China's the golden goose, my friend. Wait until their influence prevails.

Haven't seen anything corroborating this statement, but what would I know - I only live in Europe for two months a year.

Yes, we'll all be much better off with the Chinese.... Astute!!

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You haven't countered nothing, because the points you made are not valid, you are basing your counter on information you don't understand, regardless the accuracy of the information, because it does not state what you are saying.. (Brazko)

I didn't say we'd be better off. I thought my tone made that clear.

As in, just wait.......(cue dark, menacing music)

Well since your a big Obama fan and he's pushing us right into the abyss and speeding up the asian century process, I have to wonder......

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You haven't countered nothing, because the points you made are not valid, you are basing your counter on information you don't understand, regardless the accuracy of the information, because it does not state what you are saying.. (Brazko)

I firmly believe 99.9% of people wearing suits in D.C. are crooks anyhow. Man, woman, Dem., Rep., black, white or something sorta in the middle. CROOKS. Taking money out of my pocket.

The EU surely hasn't set any standard for economics, health care or frankly, much of anything. Being the "big dog" of the globe, the U.S. affects pretty much everyone else. When our stock market dropped back to "reality", what did every other major market do? If you don't know, your likely retarded or you should just Google for the answer.

China, India, and the other "2nd world" countries simply don't have the capital, nor the proper setup to capitalize on anything. Along with all their government issues, combined with the loss of demand by the American market for goods, I don't see any of these countries "rising up" anytime soon.

When America hurts, the globe hurts. It may take awhile to trickle down, but be assured that when you piss your pants, you WILL have pee running down your leg.

If your a risk taker, move to one of the 2nd or 3rd world countries and start something up. Then pray the U.S. doesn't recover, goes bankrupt within the next 10 years, and you can somehow profit off of it. I suggest printing Monopoly money!?!?

I think someone needs to start passing around bullseye targets to their elected officals. Have them ponder just what that means. This should tell you who's smart, and who's not.

Before long, the next bill in congress will be the "kevlar vest bill"; allowing the purchase of bullet proof vests for elected officals. It might not be such a bad thing to consider.

45 posts and you come up with this winner. Good post, and pretty darn accurate.
I disagree with the 3rd world. They won't have the resources to weather the global meltdown too well, and being an American could get dicey overseas. Everyone is wondering what the heck is wrong with the US. Obama was rebuffed big time in Europe and instead of following his lead, they went the other way. Even Europe gets it. Not our guy though....... right off the cliff we go.

I'll expand on all this later, but real quick....here's what you need to do. I'm not going to use any specifics or names, since well, I can't take any chances with what I've already done in preparation for the meltdown.

Get your hot assets (stocks, money, anything liquid), and get them offshore. Tax free havens of course, but it's your choice. You can still trade the markets even though the $$ is elsewhere ( I still do). All of this so far is completely legal by the way. So far.... but I won't go there.

At some point the US money system is going to go offline as a global currency. There will be tips it is going to happen and when everyone is yelling at the top of their lungs that it's not going to happen..... it will. Either way, you will want to be out of US$$ before this time. Offhand I would go with Euros, but again, it's a choice. I think the implosion of the US$$ could be handled adeptly, but it's not a certainty. No matter what, the fallout will be a nightmare for the USA. The USA may never recover from it. It's a hard cold fact and I chill at the thought of the light going out, but numbers don't lie and speeches can't change numbers, only change listeners. It's not the same thing. We are all headed towards a reality that is out of a movie.... the news outlets are selling HOPE as fast as they can.....a verbal prescription that will not cure what ails us.

This is going to be the dance band on the Titanic I'm afraid. The concrete of failure is setting as we all talk about how it's not going to happen..... there's the rub...

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You haven't countered nothing, because the points you made are not valid, you are basing your counter on information you don't understand, regardless the accuracy of the information, because it does not state what you are saying.. (Brazko)