Johnny Isakson, Georgia’s junior U.S. senator, by many accounts, is a sane, pragmatic moderate when compared to many of his GOP brethren (and the post-2000 version of Democrat Zell Miller, for that matter). That’s why his support of the Linder/Boortz Fair Tax boggles my mind somewhat.
The Fair Tax, you might have heard, is a proposal to do away with the federal income tax and fund government with a sales tax. Here’s the bizarre twist: it would give lower income families refund checks for taxes they paid on vital goods.
Why not just, umm, not tax people to begin with? Does this proposal not create the same sort of bureaucracy many Fair Tax advocates claim to despise? For that matter, don’t those checks sound an awful lot like the same sort of welfare many of its proponents claim to despise? Doesn’t it create more reliance on government, not less?
It’s a utopian fantasy that would be a disaster in practice. I can’t fathom how someone like Isakson would throw his weight behind it. Then again, Isakson’s voting record isn’t all that moderate. His “moderate” label can only be justified cosmetically, not substantively.
They probably have to fill out all kind of complicated paperwork, with accompanying receipts/documentation, in order to receive the refund checks. The bureaucrats would count on most low income citizens not meeting these requirements - hence they never get their refund checks. A big “fuck you!” to the poor.
Actually, everybody would get the monthly rebate, not just lower income families:
http://www.fairtaxvolunteer.org/smart/faq-main.html#3
I stand corrected… but isn’t that actually worse?
I don’t think this will ever be enacted because income withholding, though horribly flawed, is too much of a guaranteed stream of money.
Imagine under the fair tax, if all the people who were pissed off at the government decided to cut back their spending to subsistence levels as a protest. That could be pretty damaging to the government (and unfortunately to the economy as well).
I don’t know if anyone has examined that particular side effect of the Fair Tax.
Johnny being a moderate is like Kruschev being a reformer. As Stalin was to Kruschev so is Saxby to Johnny, Thus spake steve. Think I will have another beer.
Does this mean you’re not going to the Fair Tax Rally tomorrow in Gwinnett?
Johnny is only a moderate in the bullshit MSM definition where how you stand on one issue (abortion) determines your political orientation.
In reality, Johnny has always been extremely conservative when it comes to economics, and someone “moderate” (though not really) on social issues.
In reality, most people are pretty liberal on economic issues and moderate to conservative on social issues. Calling Johnny a moderate does a disservice to Georgians that think they’re getting some sort of champion for the little guy.
What they get is a champion for the pro-choice Buckhead woman who lives in a $5 million house.
But Chris, Johnny never makes a stink in public! I mean, he’s got to be moderate if he doesn’t suck up to the camera, right?
if we weren’t in Neal Boortz’ hometown, we wouldn’t have a “fair tax” rally. What a buncha crap.
Besides–don’t the poor spend a significantly higher percentage of their money? Yeah, I know–rebate. Whatever. There’s got to be research on this.
Hum… since when is sponsoring the Gay Marriage admendment, proposing to ban Fillibusters and being Anti-Choice MODERATE. You must be thinking of the OLD Johnny who was running back in the day when it was acceptable to be Pro- Choice, that was the last time Isakson was Moderate on anything. What was that 15 years ago???
As for the National Sales Tax - hey it works in Europe! Wait, I thought we were suppose to hate everything Europe did???
And if they are getting rid of the IRS, who’s sending out those refund checks? Oh, they will probably outsource that to China.
I am astounded that any freedom loving person would support H.R. 25___ the alleged fair tax, which is a socialist friendly, big government friendly tax plan.
If you think you are not being conned and H.R. 25 is not a socialist friendly, big government friendly tax proposal, then take the time to study, with an open mind, the following
MESSAGE TO FAIR TAX RALLY PARTICIPANTS which is fully documented!
For example, you will learn that H.R. 25 violates the founding fathers agreed upon rule by which the various states are to contribute in a general tax among the states to fill the national treasury. Our Founding Fathers created a fair share formula in our Constitution to insure a fair system of taxation. Our founding fathers agreed to change the rule from a tax based upon wealth practiced under the Articles of Confederation to a general tax among the states which tied representation and taxation together.
Each state agreed, by the ratification of our Constitution, to pay a general tax based upon its voting strength which would insure that those states paying the lions share of the tax burden to fund the Constitutionally authorized functions of the federal government, would likewise have a proportional voice in how their money would be spent . . . an idea which socialists and the friends of big government fear with a passion!
H.R. 25 ignores this important rule. H.R. 25, just as income taxation [ a Marxist type of tax], seeks to intentionally calculate the amount of tax to be paid from wealth, property and financial success within each particular state ___ a political philosophy advocating from each state according to its ability, rather than an equal per capita tax apportioned among the states as the founding fathers intended by our Constitution’s fair share formula, which various states agreed to by their ratification of our Constitution.
JWK ___ a proud supporter of our founding father’s original tax reform plan.
“To lay with one hand the power of the government on the property of the citizen and with the other to bestow upon favored individuals, to aid private enterprises and build up private fortunes is none the less a robbery because it is done under forms of law and called taxation.” ___Savings and Loan Assc. v. Topeka,(1875).
The alleged fair tax, H.R.25, is rejected at a conservative site in a
NEW POLL by more than a two to one margin in favor of our Constitution’s original tax plan!
Seems the supporters of H.R. 25 are unable to defend their socialist friendly proposal against the wisdom of our Founder’s original tax plan. They continue to avoid an HONEST COMPARISONbetween H.R. 25 and our Constitution’s original tax plan.
The only tax reform we need is to have the following words added to our Constitution:
The Sixteenth Amendment is hereby repealed and Congress is henceforth forbidden to lay “any“ tax or burden calculated from profits, gains, interest, salaries, wages, tips, inheritances or any other lawfully realized money
Regards,
JWK
Wouldn’t it be nice if there were zero taxes, especially for the poor? Well, Fair Tax is the ONLY system that does not tax the poor, the poor are paying income tax with every paycheck. I would rather choose how much I pay on taxes, like if I buy a boat, I will pay a huge tax, but if I am a single mom and buy grocercies, I will pay a very small tax, plus get a check every month to help me buy those grocercies, plus, every month say I make $1,000, but I only take home $850 right now, with an income tax, without it I can take home all my money!!
Fair tax has had 22 million dollars worth of research done on it.
Currently only 75% of people pay their income tax. 1 to 1.5 trillion dollars are untaxed every year. With the fair tax we will be able to tax people like drug dealers, you know they are going to want that hot set of rims.
And there are no receipts required, there are already credit card companies who would love to give everyone their money. I would love to tell the homeless guy down the street every month he will get $125.00. And yeah, it creates some reliance on government, the reason why republicans dislike it, but, there have to be compromises. We can’t take away an income tax without giving back to the community, hence the probate check.
Also, we have made taxes for corporations so steep that many of our industrial jobs are going over seas and being out sourced. If we eliminate all the taxes that our corporations have to pay, they will no longer need to out source, they can bring those industrial jobs back to the U.S. Plus, the goods that our neighboors produce will cost less because those companies do not pay all the tax to produce the goods. This will require repealing the 16th amendment.
“From each according to their ability to each according to their need” -quote
from Carl Marx,
the Communist Manifesto
Go Johnny!!! And anyone else intelligent enough to support such a uniting issue.