The Tax Cut Lie
The Tax Cut Lie
Stuart Stevens wrote a powerful book “It Was All A Lie” about the republican party and this book along with Steve Benen’s book “The Impostors” exposes the lies the republicans spout in reference to tax cuts. Republicans have basically two things they run with: tax cuts for the wealthy claiming they will spur investment and job creation and deregulation under the guise that regulations cost companies money and thus prevent reinvestment. While there can be some truth in those statements, the reality is heavily tilted the opposite way.
Sadly, Democrats fell in line with the tax cut drive because no one likes or wants to pay taxes. Running on the idea of cutting taxes is a sure fire way to get voters’ attention to come out and vote for you. Sadly, tax cuts = service cuts = increased personal costs to tax payers. But who cares? Taxes got cut!
The vast majority of people love what taxes pay for. Public schools – yes, help for the hungry – yes, public healthcare – yes, police – absolutely, fire departments – of course, agencies that monitor and enforce environmental regulations – of course, food safety inspections – no brainer, work place safety regulations and enforcement – why not, Social Security and Medicare – absolutely, Medicaid – why not help people, consumer safety laws and enforcement – who wants unsafe products, elderly care – yes, safe roads and bridges – of course, safe airplane and air travel – of course, and the list goes on. This is what democrats need to get out there to explain what taxes do. Avoid the negative and start explaining that those costs of what we share in paying taxes will become personal costs. Think about the costs of paying for ALL of your elderly parents’ care, ALL OF IT.
In Michael Lewis’s book “The Fifth Risk” he went into great detail as what many of federal government agencies do in their areas of expertise. (his new book “Who Is Government” goes into more detail.) The information the federal government collected is available for tax payers for free or very nominal fees. This gives non-wealthy taxpayers access to expert information in many areas. This is information that many wealthy chose to hire out for their use tends to make the wealthy people listed in Jane Mayer’s book “Dark Money” unhappy. They do not want their taxes to help others in that manner. Must like their tax money being used to educate regular people while they pay for their kids to go to indoctrination schools (religious and private). What seems to infuriate many of the wealthy is their tax dollars being used to improve society for everyone, thus the propaganda campaign to convince people that tax cuts are good and hurt no one, except the government employees as Russ Voght likes to paint them as the villains.
To be very, very clear, the wealthy have always had the money for investment in American industry. The Gilded Age demonstrated that many times over. The big industrialists and financiers, built factories, mines, railroads and banks while also building mansions all over the country. They invested in museums, hospitals and universities while watching their workers toil in unsafe working conditions with zero health care benefits, no workman compensation if injured on the job, and no retirement plans. Their companies also polluted the water ways and land since there were no regulations to prevent their practices. One could say they made those investments to compensate for the theft of wages to their workers and the damages to the environment. (Benefits were offered to executives only.) The Gilded Age also saw little or no taxes on wealth which allowed more accumulation of money for the few, while societal infrastructure was paid for through tariffs (tax on consumers) and local sales or property taxes – again largest burden on those least able to pay.
When the 1930s Republican Depression hit (third one in 30 years), it became apparent that there needed to be a huge change in our tax code that would codify reinvestment into the American worker and society. Business owners were given breaks when they used their profits to build their companies and invested in their employees. The government taxed companies to build compensation funds to help workers when they lost their jobs, used tax revenue to build agencies to monitor and enforce safer working conditions, gave tax breaks to companies to set up retirement programs and fund the government Social Security. The government also set up agencies to help protect consumers from dangerous products and financial rip offs.
At the local level, taxes were collected to build public schools, hospitals, and sadly, jails. Taxes gave a chance for the working people to build communities and improve lives. When the government started working for the people the results allowed for working Americans to have a say in how the wealth of the nation was used and not just for the wealthy. Workers were able to organize and demand better pay, benefits, and safer working conditions. The government used taxes encourage investment in these things to benefit people and yet the wealthy still accumulated enormous wealth, but it was not enough for them.
Jane Mayer (Dark Money) documented the assault on the tax code by the wealthy as they began to challenge the progressive tax code. It became “death by a thousand cuts” through the years. Democrats, sadly, jumped on the cut taxes band wagon leading to a race to the bottom. Time for a push as to what our taxes have done and can still do to give every American a shot at the American dream of self-sufficiency.
