Many aspects of the debate about taxes trouble me.
On one hand, the Tea Party and certain Republicans are absolutely intransigent about not raising taxes, to the point of it being an article of blind faith.
And yet, I can’t escape the fact that when Clinton raised taxes in 1993, the economy improved and in a few short years there was a surplus.
And several of the candidates for the Republican nomination increased taxes as governor. So, raising taxes isn’t always horrible or anathema to the Republican party.
Now, I also know that deals which have permitted tax increases in return for spending cuts rarely work out. Extra revenues from tax hikes usually just increase the government pie and encourage both parties to keep spending like drunken sailors. The only way to deal with that pathology is to starve the beast, and so I can understand being against tax increases for that reason.
But, however annoying the Republicans might be on this issue, the Democrats really take the cake. In particular, their insistence on raising taxes on the rich as THE way to both cut the deficit and ensure fairness in our nation is troubling. It smacks much more of demagoguery than sound policy.
Blame the rich for our woes instead of blaming themselves or bad government policy. That’s exactly what they and some Republicans did in the aftermath of the Lehman shock when in fact it was government policy that drove the bubble.
But what’s even worse is that when Obama’s self-appointed deficit commission recommended tax code reform which would reduce tax rates for all and eliminate loopholes and deductions, Obama ignored their recommendations. When the same proposal came up in the debt ceiling debate, it was rejected again.
Why would Obama and his ilk reject plans that raise revenue in this way? It’s almost like they want to just raise marginal rates just to satisfy the mob’s frothy cries to stick it to the rich, while at the same time ensuring their rich buddies and donors can continue to pay less than 20 percent by using loopholes. Have your populist cake and eat it too.
One last thing: the media always tries to connect harsh rhetoric on the right with violent acts. Can we do the same with Obama and those politicians who demonize the rich?
Isn’t there a connection between that rhetoric and the riots in England or the flash mobs in Philly and elsewhere? Of course, such connections are verboten in liberal media land, but only fair if you want to be intellectually consistent.
Trey Hoffman
Peachtree City, Ga.
