There’s a reason people like me argue that elections have consequences, and it’s because of Barack Obama’s tax and spending proposals announced yesterday. Obama’s massive $315 billion tax increase that violates a basic fairness principle in our tax code: that no matter who you are, we don’t count a dollar of income for taxable purposes once deductions for things like charitable donations and mortgage interest are taken into account. Contrary to the White House’s smarmy insinuations, the poor and the rich are treated exactly the same under current law.
The White House proposal would reach into these deductions and effectively levy an additional tax of 7% on charitable contributions and mortgage interest (and up to 11.6% if Obama’s tax increases go into effect) for those in the highest tax bracket — in other words, those with the most ability to support America’s charities.
I smell overreach.
Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped,
And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the O! gave, and the O! hath taken away; blessed be the name of the O!
Potshards! Get your potshards here!
Funny how items show up in spending bills without any notice — like an earmark for a president who promised not to seek any.
President Obama, who took a no-earmark pledge on the campaign trail, is listed as one of dozens of cosponsors of a $7.7 million set-aside in the fiscal 2009 omnibus spending bill passed by the House on Wednesday.
But not for long.
On Thursday, Rob Blumenthal, a spokesman for the Senate Appropriations Committee said the one earmark in the bill that carries Obama’s name will be edited. The committee will attribute that earmark to other senators on the list of that provision’s supporters, but not Obama.
No changes are expected to the earmarks requested by other lawmakers who ended up in top jobs in the Obama administration months after they sought set-asides for special projects in the bills that became the omnibus (HR 1105).
The catchall bill is an accumulation of leftovers from 2008 — spending measures that weren’t enacted before the 110th Congress expired. It’s moving through Congress now because a temporary extension of funds to run the government will run out after March 6.
Obama’s name jumped out on a list of many earmark cosponsors because he and his staff have been so emphatic about his no-earmark stance.
Via Zip. He’s like the Pinocchio of Ears.
I’m sorry, do you have a license to be selling patshards here? Are you collecting the proper sales tax? Are your reporting your full income? Are these free trade potshards, and are you paying full employee benefits and workman’s comp?
I thought not.
Speaking of, can I have a couple of potshards?
[…] to Protein Wisdom homepage « Penalizing Charity Not Doled Out By The State [Dan Collins] | Home | February 27, 2009 Why does Obama hate […]
Whatsoever the Government giveth, so it may also taketh away.
I expect Obama to do much more on the taking side before he is done.
[…] Obama has submitted his actual budget package, and it’s a doozy. Patrick Ruffini (ht: Protein Wisdom) has some comments. There’s a reason people like me argue that elections have consequences, […]
Why should there be a deduction for charity at all? I resent having to make up the tax revenue for people who donate to CAIR. I would make the same argument about mortgage interest deductions but that would absolutely kill home prices and the entire mortgage industry. A fair solution for renters would be to allow full deductions for domicile expenses for all. Renters, which I have not been for decades, have been getting screwed.
If you make mortgage interest non-deductible, then those of us with brains will form LLCs and lease our houses to ourselves. Then interest expense, along with maintenance and repairs, is a business expense of the LLC that we will simply carry through to our personal 1040s.
I predict that the current administration is going to see an astounding amount of small business startups, if only because we’re all going to be running for our lives to try to keep a few pennies to rub together.
livin’ la vida loca
a tax on cardboard
-boxes
unless said cardboard could be made into a puppet-head
and heat grates
nasty nasty heat grates
no smores for you!