#cutting taxes for the rich

[contemplatingoutlander]

Interesting article by Catherine Rampell about the real priorities of this GQP House, which are to lower taxes for the wealthy and to make cuts to social insurance programs that help the elderly, middle class, and the poor.

At long last, Republicans have admitted the obvious: Tax cuts don’t pay for themselves. Also: Republicans don’t actually care whether tax cuts pay for themselves. [...] Specifically, they’ve rigged the system so that tax cuts will be much easier to pass, and tax rate increases harder to pass. On the other hand, investments in the poor and various other kinds of spending increases — on so-called mandatory programs, such as Medicare or food stamps — would be more challenging to get through. [...] Under the new rules package, the budgetary requirements are more one-sided — in favor of tax cuts. Going forward, tax cuts do not need to be offset with any sort of savings elsewhere in the budget. They can add trillions to the debt. No problem.

But this is not true of spending programs. Spending program increases still have to be paid for.

Not only that, but the savings to offset expansions of mandatory programs have to come from cuts to other spending programs. They cannot be offset by tax revenue increases. In practical terms: An expansion of food stamps can’t be paid for by raising taxes on the rich — only by cutting, say, Medicaid or disability benefits. So basically any attempt to provide more support for poor or middle-income people is likely to come from other programs that help those same groups. [...] Republicans have found other ways to stack the deck against raising taxes. A separate portion of the House’s rules package says that any increase in tax rates would require a three-fifths vote (rather than a simple majority, as in years past). [...] There are a couple of big takeaways from these technicalities.

First is that, if you read between the lines, you’ll learn that even Republicans don’t believe their own long-standing promise that tax cuts will pay for themselves. After all, if the GOP genuinely believed this, they wouldn’t need to make it easier to pass tax cuts that don’t pay for themselves. Because such tax cuts … would not exist.

Second is who and what they care about.

“This is fundamentally about who pays for what, what are we investing in, and who’s left behind,” said Joel Friedman, a researcher for the Center on Budget Policies and Priorities. “It puts up barriers to the type of investments and public services that will help people through health care, education, supporting kids.”

As a result, we can expect more kids and poor families to face hardship, particularly if there is a downturn this year; and perhaps (even more) tax cuts for the rich. [...] Show me your budget, and I’ll tell you what your priorities are, President Biden often says. Well, Republicans have shown us: a lower tax burden on the rich, less help for the poor and the middle class.

[tomorrowusa]

Sadly, in the United States it's cheaper to take lives than to same lives.

For example...

‘No one should have to be fighting cancer and insurance at the same time’

And MAGA Republicans can hardly wait to make healthcare even more expensive and difficult than it is now...

Millions could lose health insurance to pay for Trump tax cuts

Yep, your healthcare benefits could go out the window so that MAGA Republicans can give MEGA tax breaks to overpaid insurance executives so the latter can then increase their campaign contributions to the GOP.

[republicansaredomesticterrorists]

6 minute YouTube video explaining how Ramaswamy and Musk’s DOGE budget cuts are completely unrealistic. The only way they can save the $2 trillion they proposed is by cutting Social Security, Medicare, and Veterans benefits. They are also planning on cutting the National Institute of Health, and all funding for the arts and sciences among other things. Best of all they are going to further cut taxes for the top 1% while cutting all those services to the bottom 98% of the country.

👆

[republikkkanorcs]

[thashining]

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This election was about one thing: billionaires fooling angry broke people into making them into trillionaires. Y’all fell for it. Good luck with those #trumptax #tariffs.

[dispatchesfromtheclasswar]

[lenbryant]

Looking at both sides’ economic proposals.

[fuck-u-maga]

But remember, Trump gave up a life of privilege to take on one of the worst jobs in the world. There is nothing in it for him!

[thoughtportal]

Debt Ceiling

[vowill89]

Some thoughts on the future ahead

We're going to have another rough four years ahead of us, there is no question about that. But there are some things that I don't see a lot of people talking about, and I want to bring them up to let everyone know that while it will be bad, we at least know what we're dealing with. 1. The media liked to harp on Biden's age, so let's talk about Trump's age. This man is 8 years older than when he ran in 2016. Back then he was energetic, charismatic, sharp and witty and could easily verbally spar with the best of them. 2024 Trump is tired, lethargic and mentally/physically deteriorating/unwell. The job of president demands much of those who sit in the oval office and Trump doesn't have that same energy as before. This job may just kill him, one way or another. 2. Trump lies constantly. How many promises did he make in 2016 that he just didn't bother to uphold during his first term? Where's the wall? We could see a lot of that this time around, he demonized nearly everyone and anyone he could and promised to hurt them. Do you think he has the mental energy to sit through meetings discussing the logistics on how to do that? Do you think he has the physical fortitude to be as active this time as he was last time? What may happen is that he walks into the White House on the 22nd of January, march straight for the bedroom, lock the door and never come out for four years. 3. J.D. Vance may be a carbon copy of Trump, flaws and all. He's charismatic when he spews lies and he may actually believe them too. But Vance is more performer than politician, much like Trump. When he debated Walz, he did the one sin a performer could do; he broke character. When given the smallest and lightest amount of push back by the moderators, he broke character. He cracked under the slightest amount of pressure and, for a moment, crumpled. He may have designs to become the president by ousting Trump, but the presidency is nothing BUT pressure. J.D. Vance has no idea what he's getting himself into and he will regret it. 4. Trump likes to hire only the best. And by the best I mean the best of the worst. And by the best of the worst, I mean the worst of the worst. He's going to hire nothing but opportunistic and ambitious yes men who'll do anything and everything they can to advance their own career. But they're not clever enough to do so that doesn't involve internal strife and fighting. They'll backstab each other just so they can get a win for themselves. And when they join, Vance will be the VP and seen as a roadblock, so should Vance become the president, they may be too stupid to put aside their petty opinions of him to properly work together. 5. Mitch McConnell is leaving politics for good. This raisin of a human was the only reason the Republican Party had even some semblance of focus and direction. He was one of the old school politicians who knew how to do politics properly and now he's leaving. The Republican party is going to break internally because everyone wants to do their own thing and there is no one at the helm of the ship steering them. Remember when the house had to have the vote for speaker 15 times because the Republicans couldn't act as a cohesive unit? We may see that, but far more exaggerated because of McConnell's absence. These are just my thoughts, and maybe I'm grasping at straws here, looking for a silver lining where there is none. But this isn't like last time were we didn't know what we were dealing with. We do now, we know from experience. I just wish that experience was enough to dissuade everyone from voting for him again.

[nando161mando]

Please explain why cancelling $1,900,000,000,000 in student debt is a "handout", but a $1,900,000,000,000 tax cut for rich people was a "stimulus"?

[hell0jon]

we as a species could’ve lived in beautiful forests among the birds and danced until we decomposed into the earth, but no

i have a half-finished assignment on tobacco laws due at 11:59pm tonight

[thashining]

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[strangelandofbritain]

More pre-election bribery from the Tories, because corruption and bribery are all they know.

In poverty-stricken Britain, with foodbanks, unaffordable homes, public services that don't work anymore, and a Tory cost of living crisis, how many of us does Sunak think will be excited by a cut in inheritance tax when most of us have nothing for ourselves, never mind enough money to pass on to our children?!

Tory crooks are of touch, and only there to help the richest in society.

[lenbryant]

Lightbulb. Trump’s the one who spent too much and screwed up the economy.