Estate Tax

Republican Tax Plan Will Hurt Middle Class, Promote More Concentration Of Wealth, And Will Kill Republican Majority Whether It Passes Or Not!

Ronald 3 Comments

The Republican Party’s attempt to promote “tax reform” will fail, whether it passes or not.

The likelihood is that Republicans in New York, New Jersey, Illinois, and California will refuse to vote for it, since it ends deduction of state and local income taxes on tax forms in those states.

It is also likely that a few Republicans in the US Senate will oppose it because of other aspects of the plan that make it uncomfortable to support.

The bill would victimize the middle class, and promote greater concentration of wealth in the top one percent and the corporations.

It would harm the white working class voters who put Donald Trump in office in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Ohio.

The legislation adds $1.75 trillion to the national debt, and cuts so many programs and benefits, displeasing deficit hawks because of the former, and moderates and independents due to the latter.

Charities will be harmed by the legislation, and home builders and real estate agents will be affected by limits on mortgage interest deductions, making people less willing to buy homes, and instead to rent their housing.

Corporations will gain the most from the legislation, and many Americans are angry that many corporations already pay little or no taxes.

The legislation would also hurt Obamacare in a different form, even after failure to repeal it earlier this year, and no replacement is offered for millions of Americans who benefit from it.

The end of the estate tax, which affects so few people, also will displease the average American, who does not understand why all inheritances should be untouched in any way by taxes, as wealthy people have a responsibility to pay their fair share in life, as well as at the end of life, rather than pass on tens of millions to their heirs, without any responsibility to contribute to the future of American society.

Also, medical deductions would be limited, and students who have massive loan payments would not be able to deduct any of them on their tax return, undermining the sick and the young.

One can expect that this legislation will not pass, and therefore will harm the Republican Party, but if somehow it does pass, it also will harm the Republican brand in the 2018 midterm elections!

The Hysteria Over The “Death” (Estate) Tax Created By The Republican Party

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There is great hysteria created by the Republican Party over the so called “Death” (Estate Tax), making it seem as if it is an onerous tax on the American people and punishes success, with such statement further from the truth than the average American could imagine.

What is this so called “Death” (Estate Tax)?

It is a tax on the transfer of assets of a deceased person’s estate.

The Estate Tax has been part of American and world history for nearly a millennium, and is not an attack on those who work hard and achieve success.

Realize that the Estate Tax does not apply to 99.86 percent of all individuals in America. A single person is entitled to a $5.43 million exemption, along with the value of homes, cars, memorabilia, jewelry and any other type of asset. And if the person is married, such couples are protected for $10.86 million.

The purpose of the Estate Tax is to prevent extremely wealthy people from transferring all of their wealth to their heirs, thereby keeping all of the wealth held by only a small percentage of the population.

Even after the $5.43 million for a single person or the $10.86 million for a couple, only 40 percent of the remaining wealth is applicable to being taken by government, with 60 percent passing to a person’s heirs tax free.

So for instance, if a single person dies and leaves a $25 million estate, after the first $5 million or so exemption, only $8 million of the remaining $20 million is taken by government, leaving about $17 million out of the original $25 million, two thirds of the original total. If a couple, and about $11 million is protected, about $5.5 million of the remaining $14 million is taken away by government, leaving about $19.5 million of the original $25 million, or about close to 80 percent, instead of about 67 percent.

No one should inherit so much that there is no ability to deal with government programs that benefit everyone, and remember many wealthy people get benefits from government too. So it is a small price to pay for the descendants, to lose 20-33 percent of the total wealth inherited, with those heirs being extremely fortunate to be part of a class of people that is only .14 percent, and already have greater opportunities in life, with a responsibility to society at large!

Two Senators Threaten Filibuster On Tax Bill: Bernie Sanders And Jim DeMint!

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The controversy over the negotiated tax bill between President Barack Obama and the Republican opposition has reached the stage of a possible scenario which is preposterous on its surface!

Imagine this: Socialist independent Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Tea Party favorite and conservative Republican Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina both plan to filibuster the bill, obviously for different reasons!

Sanders is outraged by the continued tax cuts to the rich, while DeMint is resistant to the reinstituting of the estate tax and the continuation of unemployment compensation, which he believes discourages people from looking for work, so he wishes to end it completely!

DeMint’s reasons are totally outrageous, while Sanders, a good, decent man, and one of the favorites of the author, is understandably upset over the tax bill, but his move to filibuster is counterproductive!

But this scenario shows the turmoil that exists in Washington, DC, and this is BEFORE the Republicans take over the House of Representatives next year! 🙁