How much should we tax the rich?
Barack Obama and, if the political ads in Denver are any indication, just about all the Democrats running for office want to undo the Bush tax cuts and make "the rich" pay their "fair share." Considering the latest (1996 2006) IRS tax data released by the House Joint Economic Committee (via Carpe Diem), it seems appropriate to ask just what they think is unfair about the current share paid by "the rich":
"The latest IRS data show that the share of the income tax burden borne by the top half of tax filers continues to rise and now stands at 97.01%," Congressman Jim Saxton said. "The tax shares of the top 1, 5, and 10 percent of taxpayers ranked by income are the highest in many years. The share of the bottom half of tax filers has fallen to a level of 2.99%.
The top 10% of tax filers are paying over 70% of all personal income taxes. If you think "the rich" need to pay more, please tell us how much you think is their "fair share." 75%? 80%? 90%?
The bottom half is paying less than 3% (is that their "fair share"?). They can vote themselves more subsidies and handouts, more government programs, more government spending, more, more, more… And it costs them virtually nothing, so why not?
This is a recipe for fiscal, social, and economic disaster, and it may prove to be the undoing of democracy. Someone needs to start a new movement for economic justice: Tax cuts for the rich! The wealthy should only have to pay their fair share!
