Isn't the main reason 47% of Americans don't pay income tax is the Bush tax cuts?

[Tony_FLADEM]

The Bush tax cuts took millions of people off the tax rolls. I remember George W. Bush even touting this when he was president. Now we have Republicans complaining about these people not paying income tax but it was their tax legislation in part that made this possible. Now I know the wages of people in the middle class have been stagnant for the past 30 years and this is also a reason, but so are the Bush tax cuts.

[phleshdef]

1. I'm not sure what effect the Bush tax cuts have on that. But there are definately other reasons.

Something like 13% of that 47 are either students or people with disabilities or people that are unemployed.

Something like another 17% are people who are retired on social security.

The other 70% are people that are too damn poor to qualify, I guess the Bush tax cuts might come into play on that a bit.

[gratuitous]

2. Just to clarify, it's "federal" tax, not income tax

And while 47% of folks don't pay federal taxes, they still pay taxes in about a gazillion other ways, from Social Security withholding to sales taxes to property taxes and so forth. So this canard that 47% of Americans don't pay taxes is so much nonsense ginned up by people truly looking to wage class warfare.

Don't believe it.

[Drale]

3. Whelp I don't pay income tax because

I DON'T HAVE ANY FREAKING INCOME!!

[Denninmi]

4. 47% of the TOTAL POPULATION is deceptive.

It should be expressed as the percentage of potential taxpayers who actually don't pay taxes. It would be a much, much smaller number.

When you say that 47% of Americans don't pay taxes (which in itself is another "Big Lie"), you are including infants and children, the disabled, the elderly, probably non-residents who get a credit against their foreign taxes that eliminates any US tax liability, millions upon millions who have no taxable income to pay taxes against.

[Sivart]

5. I would say yes.....

Before the bush tax cuts, I would get a decent refund, but not a refund of everything I paid in.

Ever since the bush tax cuts, I get a refund that is greater than my total witholdings for the year. So, I am getting everything i paid in refunded to me, PLUS more on top of that.

I have a wife and four kids, with mine being the only income, so I am claiming everyone as a dependant....incase it is relevant.

[MrDiaz]

6. Yes

bush's tax cuts are the reason, to bad they expired and were brought to us via President Obama, and should now be referred to as The Obama Tax Cuts.

[ThomWV]

7. Shouldn't it be an embarassment if 47% of the public don't earn enough to owe any taxes?

Just rhetorically if you say 47% don't pay taxes and we have a progressive tax system then we have failed almost half our people if they are not able to earn enough to even owe, But on a better basis I'd just like to know what the income distribution is across that magic 47% who don't pay. Is GE considered in that group? After all, they don't pay taxes.

[taught_me_patience]

9. 20% are those on social security

and 10% are unemployed. There are many who are in poverty that don't pay either. The actual number of people, working and above poverty and not paying income tax is quite small.

[PETRUS]

8. NO

The main reason is the pre-tax upward redistribution of wealth. Policies to examine: currency values, interest rates, labor law, trade agreements, financial deregulation, etc. A progressive tax code is important and it's sad we have moved away from it, but the dollar value is dwarfed by the impact of other policies which have serious implications for the ability of the average American to earn a decent living.