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grahamhgreen
grahamhgreen's Journal
grahamhgreen's Journal
January 7, 2013
President Obama: Recommend Neil Barofsky as SEC Enforcement Chief
With SEC Director of Enforcement Robert Khuzami stepping down, the Obama administration has a chance to recommend someone who is willing to take on Wall Street and actually carry out the charge of the SEC.
Former TARP Inspector General Neil Barofsky would be a perfect fit for this important role. In his previous position, Barofsky diligently pursued fraudsters, securing 14 convictions and recovering $150 million in fraudulent earnings for taxpayers.
Sign our petition demanding the Obama administration recommend Neil Barofsky as the next head of enforcement for the SEC.
http://action.firedoglake.com/page/s/barofsky-sec
Former TARP Inspector General Neil Barofsky would be a perfect fit for this important role. In his previous position, Barofsky diligently pursued fraudsters, securing 14 convictions and recovering $150 million in fraudulent earnings for taxpayers.
Sign our petition demanding the Obama administration recommend Neil Barofsky as the next head of enforcement for the SEC.
http://action.firedoglake.com/page/s/barofsky-sec
January 7, 2013
THERE IS NO REASON TO CUT THE SOCIAL SAFETY NET OUT FROM UNDER AMERICANS WHEN THEY ARE HURTING THE MOST.
DO NOT KICK AMERICANS WHO NEED HELP WHEN THEY ARE DOWN!
Tax Avoidance On the Rise: It’s Twice the Amount of Social Security and Medicare
The wealthiest Americans save $3 trillion dollars a year through a system of subsidies and tax avoidance schemes, which totals three times more than our annual deficit. That’s enough for a full-time job for every middle-class household in America. Here are the distressing details:
1. Tax Expenditures: $1.25 trillion
2. Tax Underpayments: $450 billion
3. Tax Havens: up to $250 billion
4. Corporate Taxes: $250 billion
For over 20 years, from 1987 to 2008, corporations paid an average of 22.5 percent in federal taxes. Since the recession, this has dropped to 10 percent — even though their profits have doubled in less than ten years. The missing 12.5 percent on $2 trillion in profits amounts to $250 billion a year.
5. Financial Transaction Tax (FTT): $500 billion
6. Payroll Tax: $300 billion
This extremely regressive tax costs the richest Americans only a small fraction of what everyone else pays. If the 12.4 percent tax (half employer, half employee) were assessed on the full $3.84 trillion claimed by the richest 10 percent in 2006 (instead of on $1.43 trillion: $110,000 times 13 million payees), an additional $300 billion in revenue would have been realized.
7. Estate Tax: $100 billion
Conclusion
The total surpasses $3 trillion.
FULL POST: http://www.cagle.com/2013/01/tax-avoidance-on-the-rise-its-twice-the-amount-of-social-security-and-medicare/
Paul Buchheit is a college teacher, an active member of US Uncut Chicago, founder and developer of social justice and educational websites (UsAgainstGreed.org, PayUpNow.org, RappingHistory.org), and the editor and main author of “American Wars: Illusions and Realities” (Clarity Press). He can be reached at [email protected].
1. Tax Expenditures: $1.25 trillion
2. Tax Underpayments: $450 billion
3. Tax Havens: up to $250 billion
4. Corporate Taxes: $250 billion
For over 20 years, from 1987 to 2008, corporations paid an average of 22.5 percent in federal taxes. Since the recession, this has dropped to 10 percent — even though their profits have doubled in less than ten years. The missing 12.5 percent on $2 trillion in profits amounts to $250 billion a year.
5. Financial Transaction Tax (FTT): $500 billion
6. Payroll Tax: $300 billion
This extremely regressive tax costs the richest Americans only a small fraction of what everyone else pays. If the 12.4 percent tax (half employer, half employee) were assessed on the full $3.84 trillion claimed by the richest 10 percent in 2006 (instead of on $1.43 trillion: $110,000 times 13 million payees), an additional $300 billion in revenue would have been realized.
7. Estate Tax: $100 billion
Conclusion
The total surpasses $3 trillion.
FULL POST: http://www.cagle.com/2013/01/tax-avoidance-on-the-rise-its-twice-the-amount-of-social-security-and-medicare/
Paul Buchheit is a college teacher, an active member of US Uncut Chicago, founder and developer of social justice and educational websites (UsAgainstGreed.org, PayUpNow.org, RappingHistory.org), and the editor and main author of “American Wars: Illusions and Realities” (Clarity Press). He can be reached at [email protected].
THERE IS NO REASON TO CUT THE SOCIAL SAFETY NET OUT FROM UNDER AMERICANS WHEN THEY ARE HURTING THE MOST.
DO NOT KICK AMERICANS WHO NEED HELP WHEN THEY ARE DOWN!
January 7, 2013
Not sure if this has been posted..... Another simple solution from Progressives - thank you very much!
NOBEL PRIZE WINNER PAUL KRUGMAN: Obama Must Be Ready To Mint The Trillion Dollar Platinum Coin
The movement to mint a trillion dollar platinum coin gets its biggest backer yet: Paul Krugman.
To back up for a moment, in case you're not familiar with the #MintTheCoin movement, the idea is that by using a technical loophole in the law, the Treasury could create a coin worth $1 trillion and deposit it in its bank account.
In a new post up titled Be Ready To Mint The Coin he writes:
It’s easy to make sententious remarks to the effect that we shouldn’t look for gimmicks, we should sit down like serious people and deal with our problems realistically. That may sound reasonable — if you’ve been living in a cave for the past four years.Given the realities of our political situation, and in particular the mixture of ruthlessness and craziness that now characterizes House Republicans, it’s just ridiculous — far more ridiculous than the notion of the coin.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/nobel-prize-winner-paul-krugman-obama-must-get-ready-to-mint-the-trillion-dollar-coin-2013-1#ixzz2HJa6qKsd
To back up for a moment, in case you're not familiar with the #MintTheCoin movement, the idea is that by using a technical loophole in the law, the Treasury could create a coin worth $1 trillion and deposit it in its bank account.
In a new post up titled Be Ready To Mint The Coin he writes:
It’s easy to make sententious remarks to the effect that we shouldn’t look for gimmicks, we should sit down like serious people and deal with our problems realistically. That may sound reasonable — if you’ve been living in a cave for the past four years.Given the realities of our political situation, and in particular the mixture of ruthlessness and craziness that now characterizes House Republicans, it’s just ridiculous — far more ridiculous than the notion of the coin.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/nobel-prize-winner-paul-krugman-obama-must-get-ready-to-mint-the-trillion-dollar-coin-2013-1#ixzz2HJa6qKsd
Not sure if this has been posted..... Another simple solution from Progressives - thank you very much!
January 7, 2013
So, the funny thing is this legitimizes Obama's option, and he'd have to sign it for it to become law! (doh!)
Congressman To Introduce Law To Ban The Trillion Dollar Platinum Coin to prevent Obama
from getting around the debt ceiling.
"The campaign to get around the debt ceiling by using a Trillion Dollar Platinum Coin has reached a new level of intensity today. Earlier today, Paul Krugman hopped on board and said Obama must be ready to mint the coin if the GOP goes to the mat).
And now a US Congressman has come out against this idea and is proposing a law to ban it (via Matthew O'Brien). Ironically, this action actually legitimizes the coin option. To take a step back, the US is about to hit the debt ceiling, at which point it will be illegal to issue more debt to fund the government, unless the Congress agrees to hike it.
In the past, hiking the debt ceiling was pretty painless, but some in the GOP are staunchly opposed, raising the specter that the US will default on its obligations. It's because of this, that people are getting more and more excited about the Platinum Option, which refers to a technical loophole in the law that allows the Treasury to create platinum coins in any denomination, theoretically up to a trillion and beyond.
Congressman Greg Walden of Oregon has introduces a law to prevent the Treasury from creating a platinum coin to pay the debt ceiling. We've posted his full press release below, but the key thing here is that the idea is now legitimized, as a GOP Congressman implicitly acknowledges that the coin is currently legal."
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/mintthecoin-congressman-introduces-law-to-ban-the-trillion-dollar-platinum-coin-2013-1#ixzz2HJYkvUo3
And now a US Congressman has come out against this idea and is proposing a law to ban it (via Matthew O'Brien). Ironically, this action actually legitimizes the coin option. To take a step back, the US is about to hit the debt ceiling, at which point it will be illegal to issue more debt to fund the government, unless the Congress agrees to hike it.
In the past, hiking the debt ceiling was pretty painless, but some in the GOP are staunchly opposed, raising the specter that the US will default on its obligations. It's because of this, that people are getting more and more excited about the Platinum Option, which refers to a technical loophole in the law that allows the Treasury to create platinum coins in any denomination, theoretically up to a trillion and beyond.
Congressman Greg Walden of Oregon has introduces a law to prevent the Treasury from creating a platinum coin to pay the debt ceiling. We've posted his full press release below, but the key thing here is that the idea is now legitimized, as a GOP Congressman implicitly acknowledges that the coin is currently legal."
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/mintthecoin-congressman-introduces-law-to-ban-the-trillion-dollar-platinum-coin-2013-1#ixzz2HJYkvUo3
So, the funny thing is this legitimizes Obama's option, and he'd have to sign it for it to become law! (doh!)
January 3, 2013
Why do wealthy folks celebrate the Fiscal Gorge? Just this: If you’re Sheldon Adelson you really couldn’t care less about ordinary income. What matters most are estate taxes, dividend taxes, and capital gains taxes. Adelson makes $1 million a year in ordinary income, now taxed at a higher rate. No big deal. He makes billions of dollars in dividends and capital gains, now permanently taxed at 15% and 20% respectively. Now that’s a big deal. Now that’s cool.
Did you notice what happened to those taxes?
Estate Tax: The estate tax exemption rises to $5 million, up from the $1 million it would have been without a Fiscal Cliff deal, and up from $675K when George W. Bush came into office. The tax rate on inheritance locks in at 40%, down from 55% at the beginning of the Bush Administration. Throughout the Bush administration the estate tax exemption stepped up each year or two, and the estate tax rate stepped down every year or two. Under the Obama administration, with the new Fiscal Gorge law passed, the W. Bush-era generous estate tax rates become permanent. Richie Rich is so happy.
Dividends Tax: If you were Sheldon Adelson – which you are not, but let’s pretend you were – right now you would be celebrating a Happy New Year because you just took a special dividend payout in December 2012 from Sands Casino of an estimated $1.2 Billion, based on your ownership of 431.5 million shares and a declared dividend of $2.75 per share. Adelson took the dividend in December fearing that his 15% dividend tax rate might rise to something like the 35% or 39.5% ordinary income tax rates, which would cost him close to $300 million in additional taxes in 2012. He needn’t have worried. The Fiscal Gorge law makes a 15% dividend tax rate permanent, a pillar of the Bush administration’s tax cuts.
Capital Gains Tax – This tax rises from 15% to 20% under the Fiscal Gorge law. Given that top earners and top wealth holders benefit substantially from capital gains, the permanence of this change represents another victory for Bush-era tax cuts.
Read more: http://www.bankers-anonymous.com/blog/the-view-from-the-fiscal-gorge/#ixzz2Gw4zxOfK
At least, that's the way I'm understanding it. Am I wrong? Looks like a bad deal to me based on this data. Oh yeah, and the fact that Big War has been spared from any cuts even though it's 60-70% of our budget.
So there you have it, SHORT TERM capital gains went from 39.6% or 43.5% to 20 percent, yes, that is a FAIL in my book.
EDIT 2: I think I might have to eat a little crow here - it is looking like I like I should have included the words "SHORT TERM" before the words "capital gains" in my OP. But mind you, much, if not most, of the money made these days by the uber-rich is in short term capital gains, as exampled by high-frequency trading in which stocks are held for less than a second.
FAIL. Obama LOWERED Capital Gains Tax from 40% to 20%!
Yes, it's a big win for the the ultra rich, who don't make money from earned income, but rather from what used to be called unearned income (http://bit.ly/131hXjd).
Capital gains are unearned income (this is the way most multimillionaires and billionaires get their money, they don't work for it).
So while a policeman may put his life on the line every day and have to pay 30% in taxes, some non-working trust fund baby who risks nothing except some money, will only have to pay 20%.
How did this happen?
When the Bush tax cuts expired on DEC 13, 2012 at midnight, the UNEARNED INCOME TAX (Capital Gains) WENT UP TO 39.5%!!! http://bit.ly/Rv5elj
But, when the "Grand Bamboozle" (fiscal cliff deal) was reached, those tax rates went back down from 39.5% to 20%. How is that fair?
Oh, and there's more presents for those who make unearned income:
Why do wealthy folks celebrate the Fiscal Gorge? Just this: If you’re Sheldon Adelson you really couldn’t care less about ordinary income. What matters most are estate taxes, dividend taxes, and capital gains taxes. Adelson makes $1 million a year in ordinary income, now taxed at a higher rate. No big deal. He makes billions of dollars in dividends and capital gains, now permanently taxed at 15% and 20% respectively. Now that’s a big deal. Now that’s cool.
Did you notice what happened to those taxes?
Estate Tax: The estate tax exemption rises to $5 million, up from the $1 million it would have been without a Fiscal Cliff deal, and up from $675K when George W. Bush came into office. The tax rate on inheritance locks in at 40%, down from 55% at the beginning of the Bush Administration. Throughout the Bush administration the estate tax exemption stepped up each year or two, and the estate tax rate stepped down every year or two. Under the Obama administration, with the new Fiscal Gorge law passed, the W. Bush-era generous estate tax rates become permanent. Richie Rich is so happy.
Dividends Tax: If you were Sheldon Adelson – which you are not, but let’s pretend you were – right now you would be celebrating a Happy New Year because you just took a special dividend payout in December 2012 from Sands Casino of an estimated $1.2 Billion, based on your ownership of 431.5 million shares and a declared dividend of $2.75 per share. Adelson took the dividend in December fearing that his 15% dividend tax rate might rise to something like the 35% or 39.5% ordinary income tax rates, which would cost him close to $300 million in additional taxes in 2012. He needn’t have worried. The Fiscal Gorge law makes a 15% dividend tax rate permanent, a pillar of the Bush administration’s tax cuts.
Capital Gains Tax – This tax rises from 15% to 20% under the Fiscal Gorge law. Given that top earners and top wealth holders benefit substantially from capital gains, the permanence of this change represents another victory for Bush-era tax cuts.
Read more: http://www.bankers-anonymous.com/blog/the-view-from-the-fiscal-gorge/#ixzz2Gw4zxOfK
At least, that's the way I'm understanding it. Am I wrong? Looks like a bad deal to me based on this data. Oh yeah, and the fact that Big War has been spared from any cuts even though it's 60-70% of our budget.
ON EDIT: Here it is from a reliable source, WaPo:
"5. Capital gains and dividends would be taxed at 20 percent for families with income above $450,000—a concession to Republicans: Boehner and Obama had already agreed to let taxes on capital gains rise from 15 to 20 percent weeks earlier for high-income Americans. Setting the dividend tax rate at 20 percent, however, is a significant concession to Republicans: Obama, in his most recent budget, proposed taxing dividends like ordinary income, with a top rate of 39.6 percent, as it’s scheduled to revert to after Dec. 31."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2012/12/31/five-facts-about-the-biden-mcconnell-deal/
Now they are calling it the 'dividend tax rate' and not 'capital gains' so there may be some distinction there....
Then there is this from Forbes:
"Capital gain rates are set to increase from 15% to ordinary income tax rates as high as 43.4% if you are in the top tax bracket and factor in the new Medicare tax on unearned income." http://www.forbes.com/sites/advisor/2012/12/10/fiscal-cliff-strategy-3-tips-for-investors-as-rising-taxes-loom/
And Egalitarian Thug posted a great link to the Tax Foundation that showed the rate at 39.6%: http://taxfoundation.org/article/federal-capital-gains-tax-rates-1988-2011
"5. Capital gains and dividends would be taxed at 20 percent for families with income above $450,000—a concession to Republicans: Boehner and Obama had already agreed to let taxes on capital gains rise from 15 to 20 percent weeks earlier for high-income Americans. Setting the dividend tax rate at 20 percent, however, is a significant concession to Republicans: Obama, in his most recent budget, proposed taxing dividends like ordinary income, with a top rate of 39.6 percent, as it’s scheduled to revert to after Dec. 31."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2012/12/31/five-facts-about-the-biden-mcconnell-deal/
Now they are calling it the 'dividend tax rate' and not 'capital gains' so there may be some distinction there....
Then there is this from Forbes:
"Capital gain rates are set to increase from 15% to ordinary income tax rates as high as 43.4% if you are in the top tax bracket and factor in the new Medicare tax on unearned income." http://www.forbes.com/sites/advisor/2012/12/10/fiscal-cliff-strategy-3-tips-for-investors-as-rising-taxes-loom/
And Egalitarian Thug posted a great link to the Tax Foundation that showed the rate at 39.6%: http://taxfoundation.org/article/federal-capital-gains-tax-rates-1988-2011
So there you have it, SHORT TERM capital gains went from 39.6% or 43.5% to 20 percent, yes, that is a FAIL in my book.
EDIT 2: I think I might have to eat a little crow here - it is looking like I like I should have included the words "SHORT TERM" before the words "capital gains" in my OP. But mind you, much, if not most, of the money made these days by the uber-rich is in short term capital gains, as exampled by high-frequency trading in which stocks are held for less than a second.
January 2, 2013
172 Democrats and 85 Republicans voted in favor. Too wide a margin.
I suggest we pass more progressive Dem legislation, with fewer R votes, and more Dem votes.
Shouldn't be too hard.
We only need 17 R's to pass anything.
January 2, 2013
"Zero Dark Thirty". Very disturbing how it's promoting torture in the first few minutes. Perverse &
unrealistic.
The filmmaker should be ashamed, IMHO.
January 2, 2013
"Fiscal Cliff: Let's Call Their Bluff"
The “fiscal cliff” has all the earmarks of a false flag operation, full of sound and fury, intended to extort concessions from opponents. Neil Irwin of the Washington Post calls it “a self-induced austerity crisis.” David Weidner in the Wall Street Journal calls it simply theater, designed to pressure politicians into a budget deal:
The cliff is really just a trumped-up annual budget discussion. ... The most likely outcome is a combination of tax increases, spending cuts and kicking the can down the road.
Yet the media coverage has been “panic-inducing, falling somewhere between that given to an approaching hurricane and an alien invasion.” In the summer of 2011, this sort of media hype succeeded in causing the Dow Jones Industrial Average to plunge nearly 2000 points. But this time the market is generally ignoring the cliff, either confident a deal will be reached or not caring.
The goal of the exercise seems to be to dismantle Social Security and Medicare, something a radical group of conservatives has worked for decades to achieve. But with the recent Democratic victories, demands for “fiscal responsibility” may just result in higher taxes for the rich, without gutting the entitlements.
http://seekingalpha.com/article/1074251-fiscal-cliff-let-s-call-their-bluff?source=tracking_email_activity_alerts&ifp=0&v=1356871500
The cliff is really just a trumped-up annual budget discussion. ... The most likely outcome is a combination of tax increases, spending cuts and kicking the can down the road.
Yet the media coverage has been “panic-inducing, falling somewhere between that given to an approaching hurricane and an alien invasion.” In the summer of 2011, this sort of media hype succeeded in causing the Dow Jones Industrial Average to plunge nearly 2000 points. But this time the market is generally ignoring the cliff, either confident a deal will be reached or not caring.
The goal of the exercise seems to be to dismantle Social Security and Medicare, something a radical group of conservatives has worked for decades to achieve. But with the recent Democratic victories, demands for “fiscal responsibility” may just result in higher taxes for the rich, without gutting the entitlements.
http://seekingalpha.com/article/1074251-fiscal-cliff-let-s-call-their-bluff?source=tracking_email_activity_alerts&ifp=0&v=1356871500
January 1, 2013
There are 2 Main Reasons for the Deficit. Tax Cuts and Big War.
So anyone who is actually serious about deficit reduction would want:
1) Repeal of the Bush tax cuts (and even the Reagan tax cuts), Increase is capital gains tax, & other tax increases on those who have more money than God.
2) Drastic reductions in the bloated 'defense' budget.
Any 'deal' that does not fulfill these two requirements is not seriously addressing the deficit issue, that's a fact.
(REF: http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2012/12/the_fiscal_cliff_is_just_a_lon.html)
January 1, 2013
Market up 166 on news of NO DEAL. As predicted. Cliff is BS!!!!!
More when I'm not typing on my phone!
PS congrats, we are winning this for now!
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