Friday, July 17, 2009

Only Democrats Run Political Risks?


I heard a couple of talking heads on MSNBC today say that if the Democrats pass a health care bill that's "all Democratic" with no republican support, then it will be "all theirs."

Fine by me. But then they added that there was considerable political risk in that as it could turn out to be a mess, and then the Democrats would get the blame. Okay fine by me still. Fair enough. But wait.

What if it turns out great, and the people love it? Wouldn't that be a risk the republicans are running? That they are saying "no" to something the people want and that the Democrats are willing to give to the people?

Wouldn't that be REALLY REALLY bad for the republicans if health care reform happens, it turns out great, and the people LOVE the Democrats for delivering like they did on Social Security and Medicare? What about that?

Why do our media ONLY focus on political risks they attach to Democrats and NEVER seem to look at the flip side of the coin?

Right wing media bias; you suppose?
Back to Top

Monday, July 6, 2009

Reagan Tax Myth

Right wingers will try to tell you that Reagan didn't raise taxes. Sorry, but the facts don't agree. Thanks to the National Review for this bit of myth-busting:
''Reagan may have resisted calls for tax increases, but he ultimately supported them. In 1982 alone, he signed into law not one but two major tax increases. The Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act (TEFRA) raised taxes by $37.5 billion per year and the Highway Revenue Act raised the gasoline tax by another $3.3 billion.

According to a recent Treasury Department study, TEFRA alone raised taxes by almost 1 percent of the gross domestic product, making it the largest peacetime tax increase in American history. An increase of similar magnitude today would raise more than $100 billion per year.

In 1983, Reagan signed legislation raising the Social Security tax rate. This is a tax increase that lives with us still, since it initiated automatic increases in the taxable wage base. As a consequence, those with moderately high earnings see their payroll taxes rise every single year.

In 1984, Reagan signed another big tax increase in the Deficit Reduction Act. This raised taxes by $18 billion per year or 0.4 percent of GDP. A similar-slzed tax increase today would be about $44 billion.

The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 raised taxes yet again. Even the Tax Reform Act of 1986, which was designed to be revenue-neutral, contained a net tax increase in its first 2 years. And the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 raised taxes still more.''
Back to Top