Bill Passage Increases National Debt $60 Billion
This news report for Dec 20, 2007 announces Congress' approval of a spending bill with a compromise regarding the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). The AMT was a bill originally intended to keep the very rich from paying no tax at all, but it's 1969 authors failed to index it to inflation. As a result, middle class people now find themselves subject to this tax.
The loss of revenue from last night's tax bill was not offset by spending decreases or tax increases elsewhere, resulting in an increase to both the Federal Deficit and the National Debt.
We recommend the book Perfectly Legal by David Cay Johnston as a resource to help you fully understand the manipulation of the tax code for the benefit of the wealthiest 1% of Americans.
Here's a link to the news article.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/20/washington/20cong.html?th&emc=th
Different strokes for different folks. You see the new bill for AMT is terms of the federal debt and you bring up the wealthiest 1% of us.
What I see is a bumbling, stumbling national legislative branch, unable to pass legislation in time to avoid unintended hardship, in the form of stealth tax increases and filing inconveniences, on about 20 million middle-class households.
It goes back to your original theme; When will our elected leaders, in this case the legislative branch, get off the partisan bickering and start to solve our (significant) problems? Or is that a naive question, and is it really all about obtaining and retaining power?
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Jim
Thanks for your excellent comment.
As Johston points out in the book I referenced, both sides of the aisle (regardless of their public posturing) have enabled the mess we're in and the slanting of the tax code.
And yes, it is about obtaining and retaining power. The paradox is that by taking care of significant problems they would probably be more likely to obtain and retain power. But that takes an electorate who will elect candidates who "play for the logo on the side of the helmet and not the name on the back of the jersey."
Thanks again.
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