December 2, 2010

Today I voted for HR 4853, legislation which ensures the continuation of many of the Bush tax cuts. If no action had been taken by this Congress, all Americans would have had to pay higher income, dividend, and capital gains taxes beginning on January 1, 2011. While I would have preferred that the current lower tax rates remain in place for all Americans, the fact is that a tax cut for most people is better than a tax increase on everyone. I will always vote to lower taxes at all levels, and I will never vote for tax increases. The passage of this bill will result in the overwhelming majority of Americans paying lower taxes next year than they otherwise would have. 

It is unfortunate that this bill was so highly politicized and that so much debate focused on whether or not those making over $250,000 per year would receive tax cuts. Arguments that tax cuts for the rich are unfair, or that those making more money should pay higher taxes, are based largely on envy. Whether one group or another thinks it is "fair" or not does not change the fact that the money should stay with the person who earned it. This is true for people at all levels of income. 

But rather than getting bogged down in the minutiae of what the ideal tax rate should be, I believe we should abolish the income tax and eliminate the IRS altogether. Congress funded the government using excise taxes for more than 120 years without an income tax, and the federal government not surprisingly adhered much more closely to the constitutionally-defined limits of its powers during that time. Real tax reform can only happen when we insist on reducing the size of the federal government and reducing the pork in its bloated budget.