Robert B. Reich's Blog, page 73
February 18, 2017
Why Trumponomics Fails
factory in North Charleston, South Carolina...
The Republican Tax ShamWatch
your wallets. Republicans are...
The Republican Tax Sham
Watch
your wallets. Republicans are pushing a new corporate tax plan that will end up
costing most of you a bundle. Here’s what you should know about the so-called
“border adjustment tax."
The U.S. imports about $2.7 trillion worth
of goods a year. Many imports are cheap because labor costs are much lower in
places like Southeast Asia.
Our
current tax code taxes corporations on their profits. So, for example, when
Wal-Mart buys t-shirts from Vietnam for $10 and sells them for $13, Wal-Mart is
only taxed on that $3 of profit.
But
under the new Republican tax plan, Wal-Mart would be taxed on the full price of
imported items, so in this case the full $13 sale price of that t-shirt. As a
result of this tax, Wall Street analysts expect retail prices in the U.S. to
rise as much as 15 percent.
The
plan would also cut taxes on companies that export from the United States. This
is intended to encourage companies to locate production here in the United
States.
But it wouldn’t reverse the tide of automation that’s rapidly
eliminating jobs even from American factories.
The worst thing about it the plan is it’s a hidden upward redistribution.
Its burden will fall mainly on
the poor and middle class because they already spend almost all of their
incomes, so they’ll feel the greatest pain from higher retail prices.
The
benefits will go to companies that export and their shareholders, who will benefit
from the tax cuts in the form of higher profits – and higher share prices.
Shareholders, who are mostly upper-income people, don’t need this
windfall.
Republicans
claim that the U.S. dollar would rise in response to higher taxes on imports,
effectively wiping out the tax burden. But as a practical matter, no one knows
if this will happen.
Bottom
line: The tax plan is dressed up as a way to make America more competitive. But
underneath it’s just a typical Republican plan that redistributes from the poor
and middle class to corporations and the wealthy.
February 17, 2017
Trump’s Nutty “America First” Economics
787...
February 16, 2017
Trump’s Most Shameful Act So Far
Miller claimed 14 percent of non-citizens...
February 14, 2017
Michael Flynn and the 6 Big Questions
February 13, 2017
The White House Mess
businessman who knew how to get things done, a...
The 4 Dangerous Syndromes of Coping with TrumpWith Donald Trump...
The 4 Dangerous Syndromes of Coping with Trump
With Donald Trump as president, some of you may be tempted to succumb to one of the following 4 syndromes. Please don’t.
1. Normalizer Syndrome. You want to believe Trump is just another president – more conservative than most, but one who will make rational decisions. You’re under a grave delusion. Trump and his ultra-conservative cabinet pose a clear and present danger to America and the world.
2. Outrage Numbness Syndrome. You are no longer outraged by what Trump says or does because you’ve gone numb. You can’t conceive that someone like this is our President so you’ve shut down emotionally. Maybe you’ve even stopped reading the news. Please get back in touch and re-engage with what’s happening.
3 Cynical Syndrome. You’ve become so cynical about the whole system – the Democrats who gave up on the working class, the Republicans who suppressed votes around the country, the media that gave Trump free air time, the establishment that rigged the system – that you say the hell with it. Let Trump do his worst. Well, you need to wake up. It can get a lot worse.
4. Helpless Syndrome. You aren’t in denial. You know that nothing about this is normal and you desperately want to do something to prevent what’s about to occur. But you don’t know what to do. You feel utterly helpless, powerless and immobilized.
Instead of falling prey to one of these syndromes, I urge you to take action – demonstrate, make a ruckus, join with others, demand your members of congress also resist, commit yourself to changing American politics.
Fighting Trump will empower you. And with that power you will not only to minimize the damage, but also get this nation and the world back on the course it must be on.
We need you in the peaceful resistance.
February 12, 2017
THE REAL REASON REPUBLICANS WANT TO PULL THE PLUG ON...
THE REAL REASON REPUBLICANS WANT TO PULL THE PLUG ON OBAMACARE
Don’t be fooled by Trump’s and Republican promises to “repeal
and replace” Obamacare. They could repeal it, but they can’t and won’t replace it. They’ve tried for years to come up with a replacement that keeps at least as many people covered. Their “replacement” never appears.
So why do
Republicans want to repeal Obamacare and leave millions without
insurance? Because it would mean a huge tax windfall for the wealthy.
Repealing Obamacare will put an average of $33,000 of tax cuts
in the hands of the richest 1 percent this year alone, and a whopping $197,000
of tax cuts into the hands of the top 0.1 percent.
The 400 highest-income
taxpayers (with incomes averaging more than $300 million each) will each
receive an average annual tax cut of about $7 million.
It would also increase
the taxes of families earning between $10,000 and $75,000 – including just
about all of Trump’s working class voters.
So
what do we end up with when Republicans repeal Obamacare?
– 32 million people
losing their health insurance,
– tens of thousands of Americans dying because
they don’t get the medical care they need,
– Medicare in worse shape,
– And the
rich becoming far richer.
This is lunacy. We must stand up to it.
February 10, 2017
Who Lacks Respect for the Office of the President?
Conway charges that media coverage of Donald Trump lacks “respect for and...
February 9, 2017
A Good Idea, Even if It’s From Republicans
Republican officials (including James A. Baker, Henry Paulson, George P.
Shultz,...
Robert B. Reich's Blog
- Robert B. Reich's profile
- 1244 followers
