400-408 – • Fox News (9/20/2011) IRS Data Show Most Millionaires Pay Taxes at Higher Rate Than Middle Class.
President Obama and his advisers are presenting the "Buffett Rule" as the cure for an epidemic of millionaire tax scofflaws, but national statistics show millionaires by and large are paying taxes at a much higher rate than middle-class families.
And their income taxes make up a significant portion of the federal budget pie.
Data compiled by the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center show households pulling in more than $1 million pay about 29.1 percent of their income in federal taxes. By contrast, households making between $50,000 and $75,000 pay about 15 percent.
// For those wealthy Americans paying taxes at a seemingly low rate, it could be because they earn income overseas or because a large part of annual income is from investments. Though corporate profits are taxed at 35 percent, in the form of capital gains and dividends they are taxed at 15 percent.
The so-called Buffett Rule has become the political centerpiece of the president's deficit-reduction program. Named after Warren Buffett, the provision would ensure people making more than $1 million a year pay taxes at a higher rate than the middle class.
The president proposed the rule after Buffett complained he was paying taxes at a lower rate than his secretary. Democrats said he's not the only one -- according to Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid's office, 22,000 people who make over $1 million a year pay taxes at a rate of less than 15 percent. According to the IRS, nearly 1,500 households reporting more than $1 million in income paid no federal income taxes in 2009.
That's out of about 236,000 returns for income above $1 million, most of which belong to households paying taxes at a higher rate. And, as would be expected, they contribute a disproportionate share of tax toward federal coffers.
IRS statistics for tax year 2009 show the millionaires -- who make up a fraction of a percent of all taxpayers -- contributed more than 20 percent of total federal income tax revenue. That's about $180 billion in taxes from millionaires, according to number-crunching from the National Taxpayers Union.
The National Taxpayers Union also found that in 2008 the top 1 percent of American taxpayers paid 38 percent of collections for personal federal income tax while they represented 20 percent of all income.
• Kevin D. Williamson (NRO Corner, 9/20/2011) Class Warfare and the Rule of Law.
413-423 – Calls – Isn't this just blatant class warfare? Akin to the peasants storming the castle. Why do people believe that by punishing the rich they somehow improve their own lives? All this talk of "fairness," and yet our system isn't "fair" at all. Half of filers don't pay any federal taxes, the bottom ¾ of all filers pay just 4% of all taxes, meaning the top 25% pay 96%, the top 10% pay 70% of all taxes, and just the top 1% pay almost 40% of all taxes. Income is taxed at a max of 35%, while dividends and capital gains are taxed at 15%. What would be the impact of raising the capital gain rate to 30%? And, isn't the bigger issue spending and not revenue?
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458-508 – Calls – Put this in terms we can all understand. The problem isn't revenue, it's spending. Imagine a family with an annual income of $50,000 that is spending $80,000 per year and has chalked up credit card debt of $200,000. The solution isn't, "Honey, ask for a raise." The solution is "We need to spend less than we earn, and pay off our credit card debt."
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Theodore J. Smith, III, Deputy District Attorney for San Bernardino County and former Chairman of the African-American Caucus of the California Democratic Party from 1999 to 2007.
• Alicia M. Cohn (The Hill, 9/18/2011) Cleaver: If Obama wasn't president, we would be 'marching on the White House'.
558-608 – Jim Liske, was for nine years the senior pastor of Ridge Point Community Church in western Michigan, before becoming the new CEO of Prison Fellowship (prisonfellowship.org) back in July 2011. While at Ridge Point, Jim started the para-church organization "70 Times 7" to help newly-released prisoners deal with re-entry, address addiction recovery challenges, find employment, and transition back into the community. Jim and Cathy have been married for 28 years, and are raising two children, Allison and Joshua. Today, Jim shares some great success stories, and how people can get involved with Angel Tree (angeltree.org). The national recidivism rate is 50%, but for those who complete a program, it's down to 11% in Texas, and in the counties in Michigan where 70x7 worked, down to 3%.
612-623 – Jim Liske,
628-639 – Jim Liske,
644-654 – Jim Liske,
• Coming up on October 13th at the Reagan Library is a fundraising dinner for TUMI, The Urban Ministry Institute (tumi.org), a ministry of World Impact, that provides inmates a two-year seminary-level education in order for them to grow the church when they get released. I'll be the emcee, Jim Liske will be there, along with World Impact president Keith Phillips. Get more info at the website.
