President Barack Obama and members of Congress claim to be focused on creating jobs and finding revenue. Instead, they run up a $1.5 trillion deficit and a $14.3 trillion debt and unemployment is 9.2 percent. The underemployed are in the 17 percent range. But yet many politicians such as the president want to raise taxes on those making over $250,000 per year.
The debate can take place about the merits of this is "fair" but it will cause wealthy people to create fewer jobs and spend less money — and give less money to charity. I asked many american friends/clients who fall into this category and almost 90 percent told me that they will either spend less, hire less or give less to charity. It's safe to say that the members of Congress don’t know what they are doing or just don't care. Of course, many of them never had a private-sector job so perhaps they don’t actually know what it is like in the real working world. So let's make it easy for them.
Two easy steps to lower spending, raising revenues and creating jobs:
Step 1
Cut all federal salaries and departments by 30% and cut all Social Security checks by 5 percent.
The government can’t cut federal jobs in this recession; It will not fire anyone or eliminate their job. Instead everyone will take a 30 percent pay cut. If they don't like it, I am sure the 15 percent unemployed or underemployed will be glad to take their job.
People working in the private sector have taken those cuts as the economy has worsened — why not public employees? Of course cutting Social Security is political suicide and many of these cowards masquerading as politicians would never have the courage to do it.
To send Social Security recipients $950 instead of $1,000 wouldn’t change their lifestyle — and in fact would stabilize the future of Social Security.
Step 2
Profitable tax holiday — a tax break for companies bringing back overseas profits to the U.S. Huge U.S multinational corporations have billions of dollars overseas.
Under a profitable tax holiday, U.S. companies would be enticed to bring foreign profits back to the U.S. by taxing them at a 10 percent tax rate, rather than the current top corporate rate of 35 percent.
I would add that 20 percent of all money repatriated would have to go to creating new U.S jobs. Cisco has more than $47 billion in cash, and almost all of it is overseas. Cisco CEO John Chambers has said he will double the dividend for shareholders if this law is passed. The extra $1.3 billion dollars in dividends would be taxed at 15 percent and bring in $180 million in federal, state and city taxes as well — and this is all just from Cisco.
Also the government would have more revenues from people working and states wouldn’t be burdened with massive unemployment payments. Some politicians are even starting to understand this. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., has said that his party would be willing to consider a tax profitable holiday, provided the companies that benefit from the lower tax rate use the funds to help create jobs. This is crucial and very testing time for the US government and the economy....
Disclaimer: This is just a research piece and not an investment advice. All financial transactions carry a RISK.
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