Stupidest AP story I've read Evah: Huckabee Pushes National Sales Tax

[bunkerbuster1]

Nothing newsy in this news story--Huckabee has been pro "FairTax," an unworkable, idiotic and anti-progressive scheme hatched by an evil, racist talkshow host (Neal Boortz) and a scummy, lying Congressman (John Linder), for some time.

But here's the bit that set me off:

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jyxC1FpKcZKNSDj_0fhRiJQHh1rgD8THDJ181

A grim future looms for Social Security, because as post-World War II baby boomers begin retiring, the system won't collect enough taxes to pay for retirement benefits. The government likely will have to raise taxes or reduce benefits.

Neither solution is attractive, so presidential candidates in both parties avoid talking about them. An exception is Republican former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson, who proposes lower-than-promised benefits for future retirees as well as new private investment accounts.

"Grim Future?" WTF? Why is the AP regurgitating Bush's discredited 2005 Social Security Piratization Tour talking points?

This is utter horseshit. The SS system and trust fund has paid for itself and is projected to be solvent until at least 2040, and probably longer. That these fuckers are now claiming those T-bills are "just paper" doesn't make it any less so.

[The_Casual_Observer]

1. A grim future is guaranteed for any politician who proposes to "fix" SS.

Thompson a lunatic that ought to stick to acting as geezer on TV.

[TwilightGardener]

2. Funny thing about the Fair Tax and the Huckster:

Huckster was going off on a riff at the last debate about giving po' folk TAX breaks to pay for medical care--that's his solution to fixing health care. How does one accomplish that when one abolishes the IRS and imposes a national sales tax instead? Diametrically opposing plans--does Hucky even listen to himself talk? He will be an embarrassment to the Republican party, but an embarrassment of riches for us Democrats in terms of debate material.

[dtotire]

6. From The President's Advisory Panel on Tax Reform

From Chapter 9 of the President's Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform

• Although a program could be designed to reduce the burden of a retail sales tax on lower-income and middle-income taxpayers by providing cash grants, such cash grants would represent a new entitlement program – by far the largest in American history. Adjusting the distribution of the burden of the retail sales tax through a cash grant program would cost approximately $600 billion to $780 billion per year and make most American families dependent on monthly checks from the federal government for a substantial portion of their incomes. The Panel concluded that such a cash grant program would inappropriately increase the size and scope of government.

The Panel also had additional concerns with replacing the current tax system with a retail sales tax:
• Even with favorable assumptions, a retail sales tax on a broad base with a cash grant program would require a tax rate of at least 34 percent, and likely higher over time if the base erodes, creating incentives for significant tax evasion. A discussion of the range of potential estimates of the tax rate is provided later in this chapter.

• The federal administrative burden for a retail sales tax may be similar to the burden under the current system. A federal agency, such as the IRS, would be required to administer the tax in order to ensure adequate collection of federal revenues and uniform enforcement of the rules and regulations underlying the tax. Indeed, two types of administrations would be required – one to collect the tax and another to keep track of the personal information that would be necessary to determine the size of the taxpayer’s cash grant.

• Taxpayers likely would continue to file state income tax returns, which would limit the potential simplification gains from replacing the federal income tax system with a retail sales tax.

http://www.taxreformpanel.gov/final-report/TaxReform_Ch9.pdf

[TwilightGardener]

7. Yep--thank you. Good info on a bad idea.

[bunkerbuster1]

9. Part of me looks forward to beating Huck like a yard dog in November.

And part of me looks forward to beating any other Gooper candidate like a yard dog in November.

(note: I do not advocate actual cruelty to actual yard dogs. Gooper candidates, on the other hand, need to be tied up and abused regularly.)

[LittleBlue]

3. Will never happen

Not a chance in hell

[Virginia Dare]

4. Welcome LittleBlue!...n/t

[rurallib]

5. That's what I thought of the inheritance tax

With a spineless congress, a non-existent press and owning the media and the message, much can be accomplished by a few.
Welcome to DU. You have come at a good time. We will be at your house for a welcome party Sunday at 1PM. We can get the address from the FBI. They have all our addresses.
:toast: :toast: :evilgrin:

[Kokonoe]

8. In order to steal YOUR SS benefit, it must have future assets

with your name on the portfolio. It must drive all the government crooks crazy that they can't steal it if it does not exist in some hard drive assigned to your name. They can only take it away from you directly or from the who would have guessed person that would watch over your 401k lifesavings.

[bunkerbuster1]

10. That's an excellent point

To be honest, I'd never even considered that particular facet of the "Why the FairTax Sucks Ass" gem.

[WCGreen]

11. What they always conveniently keep out of mix when discussing the

program is that the money lent to the government over the years by the SSA will keep the program solvent almost into the next century...

The collections will not be sufficient to pay as we go anymore, but all that money was lent to the government to keep the government ruining while Ronny and Gerald and the Bushes all ran up these huge deficits...

The other day one of the opponents of SSA claimed that SSI and SSA payments were the largest chunk of federal budget...

He claimed it even far surpasses the defense budget...

He never said if that was th official defense budget or included all the supplementary stuff Bush and his cronies have tacked on after the fact...

Anyway, the part of that SSA and SSI are the largest part of the budget that is left out is that the program collects enough cash to pay for itself and set aside tens of billions for the future...

Well, people are buying the line and the media, since they decided to just repeat what anyone says and not do any real reporting, repeats all that crap and people start to believe it...

[bunkerbuster1]

12. I have to admit, though, I've never seen the lie expressed so blatantly in a "news" story.

the AP doesn't have fact-checkers any more?