KERRY'S DEFICIT WOES
New York Post ^ | July 18, 2004 | LAWRENCE KUDLOW
July 18, 2004 -- IF it's not bad enough that rapid economic recovery has neutered Sen. John Kerry's principal domestic criticism of President Bush, now comes even worse news for the Democratic campaign: The budget deficit is starting to substantially shrink. The latest budget numbers show a $19.1 billion surplus for June, $3 billion higher than the $16 billion Wall Street expectation. It seems that a flood of new tax collections, spurred by fatter employment payrolls and corporate profits, is rapidly reducing the federal budget gap. Tax receipts from businesses rose an astonishing 38 percent over the past 12 months, and personal income-tax collections increased almost 9 percent.
Excerpted - click for full article ^
New York Post ^ | July 18, 2004 | LAWRENCE KUDLOW
July 18, 2004 -- IF it's not bad enough that rapid economic recovery has neutered Sen. John Kerry's principal domestic criticism of President Bush, now comes even worse news for the Democratic campaign: The budget deficit is starting to substantially shrink. The latest budget numbers show a $19.1 billion surplus for June, $3 billion higher than the $16 billion Wall Street expectation. It seems that a flood of new tax collections, spurred by fatter employment payrolls and corporate profits, is rapidly reducing the federal budget gap. Tax receipts from businesses rose an astonishing 38 percent over the past 12 months, and personal income-tax collections increased almost 9 percent.
Excerpted - click for full article ^
I don't know about the nuances of JUNE, but we are on our way to the largest budget deficit ever in 2004. But we're supposed to care about JUNE? Are you effing kidding me?
And I'm wondering....wasn't the Republican argument that once the economy gets rolling then that will solve the budget deficit problem. Well, aren't you guys saying that the 2004 economy is great? Then why, oh why, are we still going to have the largest budget deficit ever? Something doesn't add up, now does it?
And I'm wondering....wasn't the Republican argument that once the economy gets rolling then that will solve the budget deficit problem. Well, aren't you guys saying that the 2004 economy is great? Then why, oh why, are we still going to have the largest budget deficit ever? Something doesn't add up, now does it?
Remember the GOP's 'Contract with America' when they were trying to sieze power? (I called it then the 'Contract on America). Guess which two points they didn't put through even though they got control of all branches of government:
Balanced budget and term limits.
Crawford's Village Idiot is bankrupting the country to give the richest .1% even less than the already light tax burden they already had and to finance his misadventures abroad.
During the CivilWar rich Americans were able to stay out of the draft by paying A $300 bonus to get somebody to fight in their place(a year's wages for average worker than). Only difference today is the troops that have to fight instead of Dubya and his puppeteers don't get the damned bonus and have their jobs out-sourced while they are gone!
Balanced budget and term limits.
Crawford's Village Idiot is bankrupting the country to give the richest .1% even less than the already light tax burden they already had and to finance his misadventures abroad.
During the CivilWar rich Americans were able to stay out of the draft by paying A $300 bonus to get somebody to fight in their place(a year's wages for average worker than). Only difference today is the troops that have to fight instead of Dubya and his puppeteers don't get the damned bonus and have their jobs out-sourced while they are gone!
Crawford's Village Idiot is bankrupting the country to give the richest .1% even less than the already light tax burden they already had and to finance his misadventures abroad
Hey genius...get a clue...they pay the bulk of the taxes...when are you flaming libs going to use facts instead of b.s?
Hey genius...get a clue...they pay the bulk of the taxes...when are you flaming libs going to use facts instead of b.s?
You cant blame all the deficit on the tax cut that really never had a chance to work its way through the economy the way it was intended to do. 9/11 changed the whole focus of the USA govt. and the nation so to make sweeping statements blaming the tax cut when the tax cut was never designed to function in a post 9/11 nation is wrong. I think that Bush could have reworked the cut to reflect the times we live in now but it would have been political suicide. If you’re not in office there is no way for you to implement your policies.
Bush got stuck b/w a rock and a hard place, if he leaves the tax cut as is then he looks insensitive to deficit issue, although Reagan proved that the USA can and has functioned with huge deficits, if he rolls back the cut then he will not be in office to implement the roll back. Of the two options leaving it as is was his only choice.
Bush got stuck b/w a rock and a hard place, if he leaves the tax cut as is then he looks insensitive to deficit issue, although Reagan proved that the USA can and has functioned with huge deficits, if he rolls back the cut then he will not be in office to implement the roll back. Of the two options leaving it as is was his only choice.
Hey Senditin:
Part of becoming rich is the responsibilty of paying taxes. Deal with it. These same irresponsible free-loaders don't ever seem to leave the country for any period of time as they love the protection of America's armed forces but, unlike every other generation in American History, a large part of them don't see why they should have to pay for that privledge. Makes sense that people like you support Bush as that is his life story: take all that America offers and give nothing back even if it only means paying a few taxes or showing up for Guard duty. Take Kerry every day.
Part of becoming rich is the responsibilty of paying taxes. Deal with it. These same irresponsible free-loaders don't ever seem to leave the country for any period of time as they love the protection of America's armed forces but, unlike every other generation in American History, a large part of them don't see why they should have to pay for that privledge. Makes sense that people like you support Bush as that is his life story: take all that America offers and give nothing back even if it only means paying a few taxes or showing up for Guard duty. Take Kerry every day.
Bulldog,
What the hell is your point? You said the rich have a "light" tax burden. You are dead wrong. The top 10% income earners pay like 65% of ALL taxes...so what are you talking about? The top 50% earners pay 96% of the taxes...so that means the bottom 50% wage earners pay 4% of the total tax burden. Stop playing that Kerry/Edwards class warfare game.
What the hell is your point? You said the rich have a "light" tax burden. You are dead wrong. The top 10% income earners pay like 65% of ALL taxes...so what are you talking about? The top 50% earners pay 96% of the taxes...so that means the bottom 50% wage earners pay 4% of the total tax burden. Stop playing that Kerry/Edwards class warfare game.
They (the rich in U.S.) pay a lower percentage of their income in taxes than any nation in the industrialized world. Defense costs money. Roads cost money. Courts to enforce the laws cost money. People like you are looking for a free ride. Some things by their very nature(though not most things) need to be done by government and benefit everybody. These have to be paid by taxes and if they don't balance then taxes have to be higher.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by SENDITIN:
Hey genius...get a clue...they pay the bulk of the taxes...when are you flaming libs going to use facts instead of b.s? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
They pay the bulk of the taxes Mr Genius, because of the massive disparity in wealth that exists in your country.
From the looks of this older chart, social security tax breaks and an amazingly high top rate band ensure that the wealthy do not pay their fair proportion.
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/001201.html
America is as cheap as chips for the wealthy as far as industrialised nations are concerned.
Taxes are around 22% of GDP compared with an industrialised nations average of 40%.
US budget deficit reaches $500bn
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3430405.stm
Hey genius...get a clue...they pay the bulk of the taxes...when are you flaming libs going to use facts instead of b.s? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
They pay the bulk of the taxes Mr Genius, because of the massive disparity in wealth that exists in your country.
From the looks of this older chart, social security tax breaks and an amazingly high top rate band ensure that the wealthy do not pay their fair proportion.
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/001201.html
America is as cheap as chips for the wealthy as far as industrialised nations are concerned.
Taxes are around 22% of GDP compared with an industrialised nations average of 40%.
US budget deficit reaches $500bn
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3430405.stm
Taxes are around 22% of GDP compared with an industrialised nations average of 40%.
So what...maybe that's why we consistently outpace other nations economically. Maybe that's one reason so many people try and come to the U.S. You actually get to KEEP more of the money you earn, instead of giving it to the government to decide its allocation.
So what...maybe that's why we consistently outpace other nations economically. Maybe that's one reason so many people try and come to the U.S. You actually get to KEEP more of the money you earn, instead of giving it to the government to decide its allocation.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>First, know the facts:
What is relevant is the size of the deficit relative to the size of the total economy, not the raw number itself. The total domestic economy is the GDP or Gross Domestic Product.
In 1943, the deficit was 30.3% of GDP. In 1983 it was 6%. Today it is 3.5%, or about a TENTH of what it was in 1943 and almost half of what it was 20 years ago.
So, when the media uses the term “record deficit,” they are being deceitful, lying about the facts in an attempt to damage the president!
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
HOW TAXES WORK...
This is a VERY simple way to understand the tax laws.
Let's put tax cuts in terms everyone can understand. Suppose that every day ten men go out for dinner. The bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this.
The first four men -- the poorest -- would pay nothing; the fifth would pay $1, the sixth would pay $3, the seventh $7, the eighth $12, the ninth $18 and the tenth man -- the richest -- would pay $59.
That's what they decided to do. The ten men ate dinner in the restaurant every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement -- until one day,the owner threw them a curve (in tax language a tax cut). "Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily meal by $20." So now dinner for the ten only cost $80.00.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes. So the first four men were unaffected. They would still eat for free. But, what about the other six -- the paying customers? How could they divvy up the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his "fair share?"
The six men realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But, if they subtracted that from everybody's share. Then the fifth man and the sixth man would end up being PAID to eat their meal. So the restaurant owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.
And so the fifth man paid nothing, the sixth pitched in $2, the seventh paid $5, the eighth paid $9, the ninth paid $12, leaving the tenth man with a bill of $52 instead of his earlier $59. Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to eat for free.
But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings. "I only got a dollar out of the $20," declared the sixth man, but he, pointing to the tenth. "But he got $7!". "Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man, "I only saved a dollar, too, .........It's unfair that he got seven times more than me!".
That's true!" shouted the seventh man, why should he get $7 back when I got only $2?" The wealthy get all the breaks!". Wait minute," yelled the first four men in unison, "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up. The next night he didn't show up for dinner, so the nine sat down and ate without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered, a little late what was very important. They were FIFTY-TWO DOLLARS short of paying the bill!
Imagine that!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college instructors, is how the tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up at the table anymore.
Where would that leave the rest? Unfortunately, most taxing authorities anywhere cannot seem to grasp this rather straight-forward logic!<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
What is relevant is the size of the deficit relative to the size of the total economy, not the raw number itself. The total domestic economy is the GDP or Gross Domestic Product.
In 1943, the deficit was 30.3% of GDP. In 1983 it was 6%. Today it is 3.5%, or about a TENTH of what it was in 1943 and almost half of what it was 20 years ago.
So, when the media uses the term “record deficit,” they are being deceitful, lying about the facts in an attempt to damage the president!
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
HOW TAXES WORK...
This is a VERY simple way to understand the tax laws.
Let's put tax cuts in terms everyone can understand. Suppose that every day ten men go out for dinner. The bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this.
The first four men -- the poorest -- would pay nothing; the fifth would pay $1, the sixth would pay $3, the seventh $7, the eighth $12, the ninth $18 and the tenth man -- the richest -- would pay $59.
That's what they decided to do. The ten men ate dinner in the restaurant every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement -- until one day,the owner threw them a curve (in tax language a tax cut). "Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily meal by $20." So now dinner for the ten only cost $80.00.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes. So the first four men were unaffected. They would still eat for free. But, what about the other six -- the paying customers? How could they divvy up the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his "fair share?"
The six men realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But, if they subtracted that from everybody's share. Then the fifth man and the sixth man would end up being PAID to eat their meal. So the restaurant owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.
And so the fifth man paid nothing, the sixth pitched in $2, the seventh paid $5, the eighth paid $9, the ninth paid $12, leaving the tenth man with a bill of $52 instead of his earlier $59. Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to eat for free.
But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings. "I only got a dollar out of the $20," declared the sixth man, but he, pointing to the tenth. "But he got $7!". "Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man, "I only saved a dollar, too, .........It's unfair that he got seven times more than me!".
That's true!" shouted the seventh man, why should he get $7 back when I got only $2?" The wealthy get all the breaks!". Wait minute," yelled the first four men in unison, "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up. The next night he didn't show up for dinner, so the nine sat down and ate without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered, a little late what was very important. They were FIFTY-TWO DOLLARS short of paying the bill!
Imagine that!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college instructors, is how the tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up at the table anymore.
Where would that leave the rest? Unfortunately, most taxing authorities anywhere cannot seem to grasp this rather straight-forward logic!<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
the poorest Americans live better than 50% of the rest of the world. Take a look he next time you are in a "poor" area of your town. At least 1 car in 90% of all driveways, running water (that you can actually drink) electricity, cloths and shoes. Schools that have enough $$ to run, mismanagement issue aside, and all the job opportunities you could dream of. Class warfare championed by Dem's does nothing to help society just drive deeper wedges between groups. Funny how if you or I take something from somebody without permission its called stealing but when the govt. takes your tax $$ and gives it to anyone, big corps down to lazy citizens its called redistribution of wealth.
Both sides of the political spectrum are guilty of this they only differ as to whom should get the $$. Right wingers give it to farmers, airlines and other failing industries while left wingers give it to artists and illegal immigrants. The USA is the ONLY country in the world that facilitates illegal immigrants getting across the boarder, water stations across Arizona deserts is a prime example.
GRRRRR
Both sides of the political spectrum are guilty of this they only differ as to whom should get the $$. Right wingers give it to farmers, airlines and other failing industries while left wingers give it to artists and illegal immigrants. The USA is the ONLY country in the world that facilitates illegal immigrants getting across the boarder, water stations across Arizona deserts is a prime example.
GRRRRR
