The Colonel's Forum

Today's statistic is zero.  That's the net effect of tax rates on government revenues relative to GDP. So it doesn't matter if we have Obama's tax hike for the top 2%, or Romney's tax cuts for everyone, the Federal government tends to bring in about the same amount of money (relative to GDP) regardless. Surprised? I was too.  By the way, that top tax bracket number is worth point out too - the richest Americans really did pay 90% in the 50s, and 70% up until the Reagan years. Romney wants to give a big tax cut, Obama wants to raise them on the rich. These are largely symbolic gestures that will have no real impact on solving our budget problems. Ryan has proposed closing loopholes, but he continually refuses to say which ones. That actually could affect the middle class, because, even more so than the top 1%, middle class families enjoy tremendous benefits from the current loopholes (mortgage interest, child tax credit etc.). At the same time, Ryan wants to e...

Another ratio today, 10:1.  Romney was asked "would you agree to a deficit reduction program that offered $10 in spending cuts for every $1 in tax increases?" and his answer was "no."  I cannot think of a more clear example of how the GOP is not willing to compromise. 69% of the country favors some type of deficit reduction approach that includes a mix of spending cuts and tax increases.  Even billionaire Republican donor David Koch says the U.S. probably needs higher taxes to reduce the federal budget deficit.  Mitt Romney is among the 31% of Americans (and way too many people in Congress) who refuse to accept any tax increase.

Today's comparison is around personal finances.  Here is a comparison of Mitt, Barack, and an "average" American family.  I especially like that Romney's "wages" number is $0 - the man literally does not have a job. Hasn't had one for years, actually.  Another point is that, if you want to vote for the "poor" candidate, you can't vote for Obama either - his $600K after tax income places him WELL within the top 1%. President Obama Income Wages: $394,821 Other income: $449,764 Adjusted gross income (AGI): $789,674 (Obama's adjusted gross income was reduced $54,911 by adjustments that partially offset wages and other income) Minus exemptions, deductions: $293,298 Equals taxable income: $496,376 Taxes paid Income taxes (19.02% of AGI): $150,253 Payroll tax (4.35% of AGI; Payroll tax includes employee and employer share): $34,378 Tax rate (19.02% + 4.35%): 23.37%. Federal tax paid: $184,631 After-tax income: $605,043 Mitt ...

I think it's just a funny word. The idea sounds good - that our government should give the economy a swift kick in the rear to snap out of this recessionary trend. How does taking out more debt help us though? I read the Economist every week, and I still can't make sense of it. And whether Obama wants to admit it or not, there is clearly some pork in the $787 billion spending bill that passed. One thing which has not made much news but I am putting in the "it's about damn time" category is recovery.gov - the government's web site where you can track how they're spending your money. Why have we not had this before? I've argued for years that if Americans were forced to write Uncle Sam a check every month for the tax money coming out of our paychecks, that government accountability would be MUCH better than it is. Of course that's not practical, but hopefully you get my point. I give the government more in taxes every month than I pay on my ...