The Rich Are Already Paying Their 'Fair Share' of Taxes

on September 22, 2011 at 7:54 AM

tax form In a speech Monday, President Obama outlined his plan to raise $1.5 trillion in new revenue over the next 10 years: Soak the rich. That’s right, those greedy, private jet-flying, ATM-abusing, yacht-loving corporate fat cats need to start pulling their weight in this economy.

They just need to pay their fair share.

Those are some pretty strong words from someone claiming that he’s not promoting class warfare. Actions speak louder than words, Mr. President, and the Congressional Budget Office can’t score your speeches. You can say the rich need to pay their fair share as many times as you like, but it won’t change the fact that they are already paying way more than that.

Justin Hart pulled some numbers from the IRS and did a little bit of math and figured out that people making over a million dollars a year account for 0.29 percent of all tax returns filed, earn 10.73 percent of all taxable gross income, and pay a whopping 20.52 percent of the taxes paid. I know; math is hard and facts are even harder.

We don’t have a revenue problem in the United States -- we have a spending problem. Raising taxes on small businesses is not going to create jobs; it’s going to kill them. President Obama said so himself: “You don’t raise taxes in a recession.”

Maybe I missed the news that the recession was over. My unemployed friends will be ecstatic to hear it.

Instead of raising taxes, maybe President Obama could cut some of the careless and sometimes dangerous spending in Washington. Here are some suggestions:

$10 million for a gun-running project to Mexican drug lords
$535 million lost in the shady Solyndra deal
$16 muffins in the Justice Department (were they ‘magic’ muffins??)
Over $1 billion spent on fraudulent Pigford claims
$35 million paid to 118 Medicare clinics that don’t actually exist

Get the picture? The revenue is not the problem. The wasteful spending is the problem. Just say no to crack monkeys.

Filed Under: barack obama, corporations, crime, discrimination, economy, in the news, law, politics, taxes, tea party

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Comments (32)

Sandyr911

on Sep 22, 2011 at 8:03 AM

LOL @ just say no to crack monkeys!

This is so spot on. Yes the rich have deductions but that is what help keep their businesses moving and allows them to hire. If they want to cut their deductions how about we do a lil cutting on the EIC??? Maybe not allow you to claim more than 2 kids. Most arent going to use that $10K return of MY money well anyway. EIC is WELFARE!

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jagamama0710

on Sep 22, 2011 at 8:04 AM

I actually read an article that explained this and it depends on their source of income. If their source of income is mostly investments, they're paying at a lower rate than the middle class. If their source of income is wages then yeah, it's a higher rate. So, it's not so black and white.

Also, am I missing something but is the fact that they pay 20% due to the fact that they....make more money? So they are literally putting more money in (just some at a lower rate than they should be)?

No bitchy responses full of snark or "liberal bashing", please, that's a genuine question. Be a grown up.

tinypossum

on Sep 22, 2011 at 8:22 AM

You should get your head out of the millionaires and trilliionaires assholes and pay attention to how they got to be millionaires and trillionaires. I will never understand this Republican need to suck up to the wealthy. If you are average or even *gasp* poor, the rich don't give a rats ass about you. All they want is for you to keep spending your hard earned money so they get richer. They didn't get wealthy in a vacuum. The Wall Street types who became super-wealthy in the boom did it my mismanaging and throwing away OUR money and they laughed all the way to the bank. The rest of us supported them in their rise and they should have the commonsense to contribute to society and the economy to support the middle class who keep them rich.

on Sep 22, 2011 at 8:26 AM

The tax policy center has posted links saying 1 in 4 millionaires DO have a lower income+payroll tax rate than the median middle class household.

http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/numbers/displayatab.cfm?DocID=3205

Nonmember comment from emmie

on Sep 22, 2011 at 8:42 AM

Maybe if everyone stops saying what everyone else is or is not doing we as a nation could try to work out the situation that we have all had our stake in creating. Finger pointing, name calling, and other things of that nature will do nothing to move our country forward. Its shame that we as adults can not get past our own political agendas to think about and consider the plight we will be leaving ourselves and our children in if we dont all get together and settle on some type of compromise. I think the best thing to do about anything is to not just complain about it--do something (constructive) about it. If we do not fix this now we may be handing over an unbearable burden for our children to take over and the blame game will just continue until someone (not sure if we can trust politicians on this one) decides to act on the behalf of the greater good of our nation.

Facebook comment from Lisa Starrfield

on Sep 22, 2011 at 8:58 AM

We have a revenue problem. Taxes for the wealthy have been cut significantly over the last 30 years. If your income is entirely investment based, you pay 15% in taxes. If you work and make more than $8,500 you pay AT LEAST 15% in taxes plus FICA. That means that investment income is taxed at a lower rate than wages. Is that fair? This teacher is taxed at more than 30% because my husband also works at we are put into a higher category. More than a THIRD of our income goes straight to taxes but the wealthy pay less than a sixth. Is that fair? Those with large incomes have access to deductions and credits for farms, homes, second homes that those with less income don't have. They have accountants who can find loopholes to abuse. ALL income over the poverty level, investment or wage, individual or family, person or corporation, should be taxed at the same rate. No deductions. No credits. No loopholes.

AngiDas

on Sep 22, 2011 at 9:00 AM

It is spending AND taxes. So...your are right in part. I am not going to lose any sleep over the rich paying more taxes though. I do lose sleep over children starving and being homeless while their parents struggle to find work.

Nonmember comment from Gertie

on Sep 22, 2011 at 9:03 AM

I support doing both. Cut wasteful spending. Don't just talk about it like a buzzword. Actually do it. Cut spending. Then re-evaluate the tax code. Cut tax breaks. Make the tax code simpler. I am not opposed to increasing revenue. Both things pretty much suck. Cutting spending means that some programs will get cut. That sucks. Increasing revenue means some people will have to pay more to the government. That sucks. But you know what sucks more? Letting America fall apart economically.

hoticedcoffee

on Sep 22, 2011 at 9:06 AM

You should get your head out of the millionaires and trilliionaires assholes and pay attention to how they got to be millionaires and trillionaires.

Why? What difference does it make how they got there, if it was legal?

Buying into the notion that collecting ALL the taxes due from about half the country is somehow "fair" or a "fair share" is simply idiotic. The arguement that "they can afford it" doesn't make it "fair", no matter how many times Obama insults your intelligence by muttering the words "their fair share". Fair means EVERYONE pays taxes. Fair means EVERYONE contributes, and at an equal rate - meaning everyone with a job loses 20% (or whatever) to the feds to keep the country running.

Fair means that people with meager earnings are just as valuable to the success of the country as those with millions to spare. But class warfare and soaking the rich make for much better politics in a rotten economy. When you buy in to the rhetoric, you support the idea that half of this country is useless (at best) and parasitic (at worst). You support the idea that money makes you so important, you can save America from itself and all its useless little grunts who don't really need to exist. That's what you need to believe.

scooteroosMama

on Sep 22, 2011 at 9:17 AM

I don't think it's "sucking up to the wealthy" it's called not hating them because they are wealthy

Sure a ton of VERY rich companies get tax breaks.... but if airlines, gas, oil and energy companies lose their breaks under this plan, who do you think is going to feel the burden. Not them. they're not going to just say, "Oh well lets subtract x amount from our surplus now because we have to pay more." They're going to pass it on to the consumer. Is it fair? No. Is it how it works? You bet. Hate them all you want, but at the end of the day you'll most likely be the one paying for their tax hikes.