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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
CONTACT: United for a Fair Economy Mazher Ali, 617-423-2148 x101, |
Responsible Wealth Members Vigorously Reject Obama-GOP Tax Cuts Deal; Demand Strong Estate Tax
Applauds House Democrats for Their Commitment to Strengthening the Plan
WASHINGTON - December 10 - Responsible
Wealth, a nationwide network of more than 700 business leaders and high
wealth individuals, vigorously rejects President Obama’s bargain with
the Republican leadership on taxes announced Monday and applauds House
Democrats for their commitment to improve the tax provisions in the
deal. Mike Lapham, Responsible Wealth’s project director, issued the
following statement on Friday:
“Responsible
Wealth members recognize that in times of crisis, people at all
economic levels need to pull together and share in the sacrifice. Our
members oppose the Obama-GOP deal because massive tax breaks for
multimillionaires and billionaires are fiscally irresponsible, won’t
help stimulate the economy, and instead will pull us further apart.
“We
got into this economic mess largely by giving huge tax breaks to the
wealthy for the past 10 years. Now the GOP insists that the very same
strategy will get us out of the mess. It makes no sense at all.
If tax cuts for the rich resulted in job creation, we wouldn’t be where
we are today. For the GOP, tax cuts for the wealthy are the
prescription for every illness. To the contrary, the tax cuts themselves are part of the disease the nation is suffering from.
“Responsible
Wealth members, who are all among the top 5% of earners and wealth
holders, particularly oppose the estate tax portion of this deal. Rather
than reinstating the 2009 estate tax levels, as most observers
expected, Obama’s deal actually reduces the rate to 35% and raises the
deduction to $5 million for the next two years. It is obscene and
unnecessary, and it benefits no one but a handful of heirs of rich
parents. The estate tax is reason enough to reject the deal.
“We
applaud the commitment by Speaker Pelosi and the House Democrats to
reject the tax provisions and work toward a bill that helps working
families, limits tax cuts to millionaires and billionaires, and is
fiscally sound. They understand that the loss in revenue from these tax
breaks will be used to justify cutbacks that will hurt everyday people –
schools, health care and other programs will end up being cut.
“The
Republican experiment has failed, repeatedly. There is no excuse for
giving it another two years, even in good economic times, which these
certainly are not.”
Responsible
Wealth member Jerry Fiddler, founder of Wind River Systems, and
currently CEO of Zygote Ventures, added, “The Obama proposal gives away
far too much on both top-bracket income tax rates and the estate tax. As
a business owner, I resent being used as a poster child for weakening
the estate tax or extending top tier tax rates. No business owner that I
know of, myself included, makes business decisions based on paying
estate tax. I’m proud and happy to pay the estate tax.”
Responsible Wealth,
a project of the non-profit United for a Fair Economy, is a network of
over 700 wealthy and upper-income business leaders, investors and
inheritors who use their unique voices to advocate for progressive state
and federal taxation and greater corporate accountability.
Mike Lapham and other Responsible Wealth members are available for interviews upon request.
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Show AllThis week's Team Obama and GOP talking points emphasize that although they "agree that extending income and estate tax cuts is not expected to produce jobs, the business tax credit and especially the payroll tax holiday will produce 700,000 jobs per year, and if those programs end while the economy is still weak, the unemployment rate will rise"
The US currently has a shortage of confidence and an abundance of money waiting to be invested. The Obama/GOP claim might make sense only if there was a money shortage.
The "payroll tax holiday" which cuts Social Security funding WILL be the breakthrough Obama and the GOP need to start unravelling Social Security. Two Republican Senators (Corker TN & Johanns NE)told reporter Ryan Grim that whenever Democrats attempt to end the "payroll tax holiday" the GOP will scream TAX HIKE, and the "holiday" and Social Security funding cuts will be permanent. The GOP can then claim that Social Security is underfunded and kill Social Security.