A few days ago I noted that Sen. Rick Scott¹ had released an "11 Point Plan to Rescue America" which included a proposal to ensure that everyone pays at least some federal income tax. He wants no more of those free riders who pay zero in taxes.
As I mentioned, the problem with this is not that a bunch of folks who pay zero will now have to pay at least one dollar. The problem is that thanks to refundable tax credits like the EITC, lots of poor people pay negative taxes ranging from a few hundred dollars all the way up to thousands of dollars. For those people, a tax of one dollar is an increase of hundreds or thousands of dollars.
So how much does this add up to? The Tax Policy Center crunched the numbers and produced this:
They estimate that Scott's proposal would raise taxes by about $1 trillion over ten years. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy agrees and posted this map of which states will get hit the hardest:
But there's more! Most of the people who pay no income taxes are either college students, disabled, retired, or very poor. Do we really want to raise taxes by thousands of dollars on these people?
And there's even more! As Dana Milbank explains, Scott's plan includes lots of other stuff too:
Suppose, for a moment, that the head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, the group overseeing the 2022 campaigns of all Democratic senators and Senate candidates, announced that Democrats, if they keep congressional majorities after November’s elections, would enact a plan that would raise taxes on working families more than $1 trillion over 10 years.
Further suppose that this top Democratic official also pledged that the Democratic majority would “sunset” laws that provide Americans with Social Security and Medicare, military retirement benefits, veterans programs, unemployment compensation, student loans, deposit insurance and more. Additionally, the Democrats would...“Gradually end all imports from Communist China.” That’s $600 billion a year in trade.
“Build supply chains that rely solely on American workers and allies.” That would wipe out vast amounts of U.S. foreign investment. “Cut the IRS funding and workforce by 50 percent.” Good luck getting your tax refund. Sell off all “non-essential” government property. Goodbye, national parks? Cut off funds to states “other than disaster relief.” No money for health care, education, housing or roads. “Prohibit debt ceiling increases.” Get ready to default.
Milbank thinks Democrats can make hay with this. It's not as if Scott is just some random fire-breathing backbencher, after all. He's a senior senator who's the head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Nor has he backed off his plan, even after Mitch McConnell publicly spanked him for it.
I'm skeptical, but I suppose it might work. I guess it depends on how many Republicans we could sucker into supporting Scott.
¹He's the one who looks eerily like Lex Luthor.
NO, no, no--the tax increases won't hurt you--only "them". The liberal media is lying. I'm saving Social Security, not killing it. etc...
The stuff Scott is proposing is so lunatic that when Democrats try to point it out Republicans will deny it and it will just be considered hyperbole to most people. And the media will dismiss it as such.
You mean he looks like Gene Hackman? ...
I thought "Skeletor" was the go-to meme.
He who must not be named...
He looks like Voldemort's snake wearing a human skin.
I think all these comments, and the original footnte, are tatseless.
No one can say you're wrong.
Yeah, that’s the real problem here, tasteless comments on a blog. Not a plan to further impoverish the poorest Americans, put forward by a Senator who ran a company that defrauded the government of hundreds of millions of dollars; who escaped any punishment with something north of $300 million in his pocket, while his company pled out to felonies and paid $2 billion in fines and settlements.
It's doubly stupid because Yehouda's messiah, El Jefe Maximo de Maralago, was Shitposter Supreme.
Where did you get the idea that I support Trump?
For the record, I think he is evil that should be in jail.
tasteless means that the actual discussion is less effecive.
teasless comments means that the actual discussion is less effecive. (missed the word comments).
What effectiveness are you expecting out of a blog comment thread?
exchange of interesting ideas and views.
Democrats need to repeat this everywhere from now on:
Republicans want to raise federal taxes by $1 trillion
Republicans want to end Social Security
Republicans want to end Medicare
Just say it.
When the Republicans do this, it will be presented as a tax cut. And it will be. Taxes will be cut on the wealthy and corporations with small amounts going to the middle class. The “lucky duckies” will be forced to finally pay their “fair share”. The MSM will talk about the Republican tax cut bill. The Social Security and Medicare stuff will be denied and presented as improvements to assure they are stable. The rubes will buy it.
It's only an eleven point plan because Ian Svenonius threatened to sue if Rick took it all the way to thirteen.
Rick Scott, yet another political hack trying to sound intelligent while taxing the poor. This is an annual event. What a horses backside. Sorry horses.
Does anybody understand why it does it?
Does he really think that it wins any voters?
Rick Scott is a hack and a crook. Never forget HIS company defrauded Medicare to the tune of $1.7 billion.
It's clear from this plan who he hates.
That's all that matters. "He hates the same people I hate -- hand me the goddamn ballot."
"But he hates *you*.
"Maybe -- but not as much."
Davis X is back!
This makes up for Shooter's downward spiral entering the Protocols Phase.
I suppose. On the other hand, perhaps none of this is relevant because we now live in a different world than just a few weeks ago.
Well, as he has not been getting his usual commissions (thanks to COVID), …….
What a moron. McConnell must daydream of seeing this dude's dull-eyed mug in a snuff film.
They prolly make those somewhere in Florida.
Could happen.