Posted: 11/24/2008 10:27:11 AM EDT
Source: www.foxnews.com Obama Proposes Big Stimulus Package, Tax Increases on Wealthy. President-elect Barack Obama on Monday is to introduce his team of economic experts to battle the most severe U.S. financial crisis in eight decades Monday, November 24, 2008 President-elect Barack Obama unveiled key elements of his blueprint for turning around the economy –– and the team tasked with making it work –– including a massive stimulus package and tax cuts for a "vast majority" of Americans paid for by the nation's "wealthiest." Against a backdrop of increasing calls for him to establish a viable economic rescue plan well before he takes office on Jan. 20, Obama said reforms in Washington will be needed to create a "sustainable economy," including larger contributions from taxpayers earning more than $250,000 per year. "We've got to restore some balance to our tax code and the Bush tax cuts were disproportionately targeted to the very wealthiest Americans –– those who were making more than a quarter million dollars a year can afford to pay a little more," the president-elect said. "And it is important if we're going to help pay for some of these expenditures that are absolutely necessary to get our economy back on track that those who are in a position to pay a little more do so. Whether that's done through repeal or whether that's done because the Bush tax cuts are not renewed is something that my economic team will be providing me a recommendation on," he said. Saying his priority is to create 2.5 million jobs and sustain economic growth over the long term are his priorities, Obama on Monday named Timothy Geithner as his choice for Treasury secretary and Lawrence Summers as head of the National Economic Council. Obama also announced that Christina Romer will be chairwoman of his Council of Economic Advisers and Melody Barnes as head of the Domestic Policy Council. The newly-appointed economic team will confront a financial crisis that continues to deepen in spite of hundreds of billions of dollars in federal emergency spending in recent weeks. Some economists have endorsed spending up to $600 billion to revive the economy. Sen. Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat, and former labor Secretary Robert Reich, a member of Obama's economic advisory board, both suggested $500 billion to $700 billion. Obama said his economic team's first job will be to work with Congress to pass an economic stimulus package. "Not only do I want the stimulus package to deal with the immediate crisis, I want it also to lay the groundwork for long-term sustained economic growth," he said. Obama said Geithner and Summers are well-equipped to address the failing economy. "If we do not act swiftly and boldly, most experts believe we could lose millions of jobs in the next year," he said. "While we can not underestimate the challenges we will face, we also can't underestimate our capacity to overcome them –– to summon that spirit of determination and optimism that has always defined us, and move forward in a new direction to create new jobs, reform our financial system, and fuel long-term economic growth." Geithner –– currently the president of the New York Federal Reserve and vice-chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York –– played a key role in the Bear Stearns sale of this spring and is a longtime Washington insider, having worked for the Treasury Department and the Council on Foreign Relations. Wall Street stocks jumped significantly when word leaked Friday of Obama's decision to appoint him. A protege of current Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson, Geithner is in the midst of the Treasury moves taken so far, and his expected nomination was greeted warmly by Paulson. "I have the highest regard for Tim –– his judgment and creativity have been critical to designing and implementing the necessary actions we've taken to protect and strengthen our financial system. I have great confidence in his understanding of markets, his judgment and leadership, and his ability to meet the challenges that lie ahead," Paulson said. "The reality is that the economic crisis we face is no longer just an American crisis, it is a global crisis and we will need to reach out to countries around the world to craft a global response. Tim's extensive international experience makes him uniquely suited for this work," Obama said. Lawrence Summers –– who was Treasury secretary under former President Bill Clinton and is a professor at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government –– will take over the National Economic Council. Summers resigned from his position as president of Harvard University in 2006 amid growing complaints from environmentalists and minority groups over controversial remarks he made on topics like free-trade and affirmative action. "As a thought leader, Larry has urged us to confront the problems of income inequality and the middle class squeeze, consistently arguing that the key to a strong economy is a strong and growing middle class. This idea is the core of my own economic philosophy and will be the foundation for all of my economic policies," Obama said. Obama also introduced Romer and Barnes. Romer is a macroeconomist and economic historian who is a member of the National Bureau of Economic Research's Business Cycle Dating Committee, which officially determines when a recession has started and ended. Barnes, who is an official at the left-leaning Center for American Progress and former chief counsel to Sen. Ted Kennedy, will lead Obama's health care reform. As for a bailout of the auto industry, Obama said taxpayers can not be expected to "pony up" more money for the Big Three automakers who have been "resistant to change." He said he was "surprised" that the CEOs of the Detroit car companies "did not have a better thought-out proposal when they arrived" on Capitol Hill last week. |
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I am thinking 2 things about this.
1) It is stupid and Obama is doing nothing but focus the front sight tip on his foot. 2) The business side of me says this is great. For anyone that is making a bit more over that 250K mark will be much more inclined to put those monies away in "pre tax" environment to make sure they stay under the 250K mark, therfore avoiding the Obamatax. And sorry, 250K isnt "rich" by any stretch. Where did they come up with that? |
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I am thinking 2 things about this. 1) It is stupid and Obama is doing nothing but focus the front sight tip on his foot. 2) The business side of me says this is great. For anyone that is making a bit more over that 250K mark will be much more inclined to put those monies away in "pre tax" environment to make sure they stay under the 250K mark, therfore avoiding the Obamatax. And sorry, 250K isnt "rich" by any stretch. Where did they come up with that? Its very rich in Kenya, Phillipines, Hawaii, Chicago suburbs, etc... |
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In theory, you:
* Push the gov't into debt to pay for a cash handout to the populace * The populace then does what they do best when they receive a windfall or unexpected sum - they spend it. Usually on consumer goods but occasionally to pay of consumer debt. You hope that the majority of people do sh*t like buy televisions. * Increase corporate taxes for 2009. Even if the change is enacted late, they still get the money for the year. You have the populace in your pocket (because you gave them money) and you've got your party on ticket, plus the minority party as well, since they all want to stay in office. You've got a whole year to enact the tax increase and you can pick your time to do it when there will be the least resistance. * Take money from corporations and the "wealthy" - but you can only determine those taxes based upon income, not assets. Assets do occasionally need to be transferred so in order to accomplish true "wealth redistribution" you must nail people on capital gains. * The gov't now has a "surplus" because the debt is lower than projected (because you changed a law and took more money). You don't actually have to pay down the debt, you just need to overestimate, steal money, then you're good to go. Cutting military spending also helps a lot here. You use this as propaganda to the increase the interest rate. * You let the interest rate go up a bit which does a few things. First, the majority of the populace spends everything that they get so they won't be very effected. Second, you increased the capital gains so the higher the interest rate, the larger the gov't cut of it is. Third, the higher the interest rate, the faster wealth appreciates (i.e. inflation) but also the faster the gov't gets to take it. * To keep inflation in check, you have to keep spending up. More market competition drives down costs, countering inflation (which still occurs) with the need for corporations to sell their goods and services at lower ticket prices. This masks inflation so that the average person only sees it slowly, since they are constantly bombarded with how low prices are (that is, please give me your business). * Now, with lower corporate profits, you've got the protect the wage earner. Lower profits mean fewer jobs and slaries so you need to protect people by mandating an increase in minimum wage. Think pretty high, on the order of $10/hr or above. This will drive up inflation as well, but as long as there's still blood to drain from the corporate world, it'll still be masked. If you're lucky and things go as planned, you'll have accomplished the redistribution of wealth by swelling government. But wait, you say, how does that actually redistribute wealth? By tackling the core problem of wealth in the first place - namely, that the average person does not know how to manage it. They spend at the first chance they get. They don't want wealth, they want stuff. So you give them stuff. See how that works? You don't give them lower taxes and a chance to save and obtain wealth, you give them free healthcare and gov't handouts. You don't give them job security by providing corporations with a comfortable marketplace in which to offer jobs, you give them a government program that helps you sue if they get fired - and take more money from corporations. Now the only real force that can screw you up is if corporations tank or ship jobs overseas. See, the trick is to bleed them just enough so that they doen't die. Obama is advocating a tightrope approach of corporate theft and wealth redistribution (after a fashion). It will succeed wildly if it causes content among the populace and can bring down crime and increase worker productivity but if anything else happens... |
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********Transmit Message********** Obama a fucking idiot. Stop. "Soak the rich, blah blah, blah", which we knew was coming. Stop. Sell all U.S. assets and real estate favorably. Deposit 30% accounts in Dubai, 20% Kuwait, 20% Grand Cayman, 20% Singapore, 10% Japan. Hold in general funds until further notice. Stop. Contact tax attorneys and investment company in Zurich. Complete by Dec 26, 2008. Stop. By order XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. Stop. ********End of Message************ ********End Transmission********** |
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We start taxing everyone that makes over $250,000 at 90% and above. Welcome back Carter. And then we can turn down the thermostats and wear sweaters.  Someone remembers...You know why Jimmy Carter wore a lot of sweaters? So he could pull the wool over our eyes. |
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Rather than going through all this stupid shit, why don't they just cut .gov spending, and give people back the money they paid in. The economy will boom, people will have jobs, and corps. will have profits.
As Reagan said, "Government isn't the solution, it's the problem." |
