"Revenue Neutral"

When Putsch says it, it means a tax on stupidity

by Bryan Zepp Jamieson

11/22/04

http://www.zeppscommentaries.com/Politics/taxing.htm

One of the main whines coming from the red states types lately has been "Libruls think we’re STUPID!" usually delivered with quivering chin and puppy dog eyes. They vacillate, like all good paranoids, between this and sneering, blustering, strutting contempt for "the losers."

Well, it’s possible that there’s a reason people think those who voted for Putsch are stupid.

I’ve maintained for years that there’s two types of Republicans: rich, or stupid. The rich vote Republican out of their own self interest. The stupid support Republicans because they are easy to distract with phony appeals to patriotism and genuine appeals to bigotry.

If all that was wrong with them was that they were empty-headed flag wavers, that would qualify them as being a bit dim. What makes them certifiably stupid is their apparently endless capacity for voting against their own best interests.

Want proof?

For years, people have warned that Putsch is engaged in a massive redistribution of wealth, from the have-nots to the haves. His "tax cuts" gave immense windfalls to the ultra-wealthy, a pittance to the middle class, and cost the middle class thousands per family in lost services and entitlements. And, of course, there’s the matter of the eventual taxes that will have to be levied to cover the trillions in debt and rising interest rates.

The White House floated a trial balloon on a new tax scheme though one of their more reliable whores, the Washington Pose. The Pose (some people spell the name differently, thus creating the impression that it’s an actual newspaper) ran a story that the admin was considering a new tax "reform." In it’s usual "never question" style, the Pose reported, the White House had "plans to push major amendments that would shield interest, dividends and capital gains from taxation, expand tax breaks for business investment and take other steps intended to simplify the system and encourage economic growth."

Since in the days after the election they had to raise the debt ceiling by another $800 billion to $8.2 trillion, and are finally realizing that all this new debt is making people a little nervous, they declared that this new tax reform would be "revenue neutral."

The "reform" is one of the cherished ideals of the GOP: lifting all taxes on income that comes from dividends or stocks. There is absolutely no reason, in GOP eyes, why the idle rich should have to contribute anything to the society that made them rich. Taxes should only be paid by people who actually do something to earn their income. The rich should be rewarded for being our natural leaders. It’s a terrible responsibility, you know.

One of the more disconcerting claims made by others is that the last two tax cuts caused the national debt to explode, and even the dull-eyed morons with the low sloping foreheads in the red states were starting to say, "Hey, waaaiiiittttt a minute here..." Even if they can’t figure out that the national debt will cause tax rates to spiral upward with nothing in return to show for it, they can at least figure out what "interest payments" are.

Republicans had been assuring them that the huge spike in the annual deficits was caused by 9/11 and the fact that we had to attack some country in a similar time zone as Osama bin Laden to avenge it, and had nothing to do with the tax schedules. Red states, being, as noted, stupid, ate this up with a spoon.

But this latest tax reform is a well aimed kick at the nuts of Putsch’s supporters in the red states (wealthy and productive people are noticeably less likely to live in a red state, which should tell you something).

How does Putsch propose to pay for the latest give-away to the rich?

He plans to first eliminate the tax deductions that businesses get for offering employees medical coverage. Everyone hates those business tax loopholes, right? That one is a big one. (And red staters never stop to ask why, if the government – i.e., the taxpayer – has been underwriting medical insurance for employees right along, why business owners seem so put upon in offering it to their workers. Just part of that magic red state stupidity...)

Granted, it will push the number of employees (and family members) without medical coverage from the present 45 million to over 100 million, but it will enhance revenue by some $125 billion a year. And enhancing revenue is GOOD, in the eyes of red staters. Not to do so would be unpatriotic or something.

The second part is a true marvel. Putsch proposes to seal off another loophole. Folks who have been getting unfair breaks on their federal taxes by writing off the amounts paid for their state and local taxes won’t be able to do that any more. Workers, that is: corporations will still be able to do that, and of course, the wealthy won’t be paying any federal income taxes anyway. Just the guy pulling down $20 or $50K a year, who was getting a deduction on his taxable income of some $4 to $6 thousand a year, and who thus didn’t have to pay $300 - $2500 a year on his federal taxes.

Say, doesn’t that describe most of the people who voted for Putsch?

By gosh, I think it does! Except for the rich, of course.

Any Putsch supporter reading this who is not rich can go to the top of this essay to see what the two types of Republican are. They’ll probably need a refresher.

Molly Ivins likes to quote an old Texas political saying: "You dance with them whut brung you." In other words, a politician pays close attention to the needs and wants of the people who voted him or her into office.

Putsch seems to have re-arranged that a little. His version apparently reads, "You dance ON them whut brung you."

Oh, yes, and he wants to send more troops into Iraq. After all, it’s just the children of stupid people (translated from GOPese: children of POOR people) who will be sent into that meat grinder.

If you think the United States could never be as bad as Iraq, reflect on this: the present-day Iraq is wholly Putsch’s creation.

Sure he could turn the US into another Iraq.