HARRISBURG — Republican Party of Pennsylvania Chairman Rob Gleason released the following statement regarding the Buffett Tax vote recently taken up by the U.S. Senate:
“Just like he’s done 98% of the time, Bob Casey has once again sided with President Obama to raise taxes on job creators. Obama and Casey’s intentions are transparent; to create more political theater that will do nothing to lower gas prices, create jobs or reduce the debt, nor will it won’t help a single Pennsylvania family find a job,” said Gleason
“President Obama and Bob Casey should be focused on fixing the economy, but instead, they are spending their time rolling out political gimmicks in the wake of their highly contested reelection bids. But the numbers don’t lie and it’s clear that the Obama-Casey record has only made our economy worse. This vote today makes it clear that Barack Obama and Bob Casey are only focusing on saving the two jobs they care about — their own.
“I applaud the Senate for voting down the Obama’s Buffett gimmick. Pennsylvania families deserve real leadership from someone like endorsed Republican U.S. Senate candidate Steve Welch, who is focused on helping Americans struggling in this economy.”
(Source: Republican Policy Committee. John Thune, Chairman.)
John Cornyn: Buffett Rule is ‘Trojan horse’
“… what we also need to do is look at why is it that half of the households in America pay zero income tax,” Cornyn said after questioning the past expansion of the Alternative Minimum Tax. “We need some real tax reform. This isn’t it, this is a gimmick.” (Dixon, Darius. “John Cornyn: Buffett Rule is ‘Trojan horse.” Politico. April 16, 2012.)
‘Buffett Rule’ Is More Complicated Than Politics Suggest.
The number of people who fall under the Buffett Rule is quite small, only about 60,000 people. And the amount of revenue that would be generated over the next 10 years from raising their taxes is equally small — just $13 billion over the next decade, if people like private equity , venture capital and hedge fund managers, who receive the bulk of their income from investments, were taxed at the ordinary income tax rate instead of the capital gains rate of 15 percent.
But the president’s plan also has several unintended consequences for people who make far less than $1 million a year. Interest on municipal bonds , for instance, is now tax-free. Under the president’s proposal, only taxpayers who pay an income tax rate of 28 percent or less would continue to get the tax exemption.
Limiting the deduction would surely raise the cost of borrowing for municipalities, a cost that would presumably be passed on to city and state taxpayers. It might also limit the number of people interested in municipal bonds.
(Sullivan, Paul. ‘Buffett Rule’ Is More Complicated Than Politics Suggest. New York Times. September 23, 2012.)
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