Feeding your family: almost as bad as paying taxes
Rep. John Fleming (R-LA) appeared on MSNBC with Chris Jansing this morning to attack President Obama’s new deficit reduction plan, which includes some tax increases on the wealthy. Taking up the typical GOP talking point, Fleming said raising taxes on wealthy “job creators” is a terrible idea that kills jobs because many of these people are small business owners who pay taxes through personal income rates.
Fleming is himself a businesses owner, so Jansing asked, “If you have to pay more in taxes, you would get rid of some of those employees?” Fleming responded by saying that while his businesses made $6.3 million last year, after you “pay 500 employees, you pay rent, you pay equipment, and food,” his profits “a mere fraction of that” — “by the time I feed my family, I have maybe $400,000 left over.”
I love that the key qualifier here isn’t “after taxes” but “after feeding his family.” As if feeding his family is a burden almost as pesky and unwanted as those dreaded taxes.
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62 Responses to “Feeding your family: almost as bad as paying taxes”
JSpencer:
You’re missing the point, JSpencer. Much as you, SteveK, and Allen love apportioning blame, it’s not about blame, it’s about what policies will produce what outcomes.
You all claim that tax breaks don’t trickle down. And you have some justification. Though I don’t think there’s a consensus about what “trickle down” means or how we’d know if it were happening.
If it means reducing unemployment numbers, I’ll stand by what I said: the Democrats’ policies aren’t working either. Whine all you like about the hand they were dealt, and SteveK can moan about how unreasonable such an statement proves all conservatives to be. But the economic situation is what it is, and to say the Democrats volunteered to take it on would be a gross understatement. They fought hard to get into power, they took aggressive steps to restart the economy, and those haven’t worked.
We will need to raise taxes. Whether we raise them on businesses or individuals, it will cost some private sector employment. It may still be the right move if we get a greater benefit from it, such as balancing the government’s books.
But the justification needs to be based on analyzing the benefit, not hating on business owners. Allen’s reasoning seems to be that if we can paint them as unsympathetic characters, that justifies taxing them more. That’s not sensible economic policy, that’s tabloid journalism.
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Oh Yeah? Walk in my “shoes” duck. Give that a try.
You need a little business study IMO, because you are assuming that only one side of this argument knows what they are talking about. Which makes me wonder what you are talking about.
Dr. J-
Uh appropriating blame?
When people argue disingenuously in favor of greed, you blame them because they already know better. They damn well know better, or their arguments would bear out their contentions a heck-of-a-lot better than it has to date!
Tax Cuts DO NOT create jobs. Raising taxes WILL NOT LOSE jobs.
It’s the simple facts that you circumnavigate that are destroying your argument and pointing “blame” in your direction.
Allen, those aren’t facts, those are claims. Ones I (and others) find difficult to believe.
It seems pretty obvious to me that what business owners tend to spend their money on is business. That’s how this guy grew his to 500 employees. The less money you leave in his pocket, the less of that he’s going to be able to do in the future.
Dr. J-
WHOA! Biggest tax cut in hoistory under Bush results in 10% unemployment and damaged economy.
What more proof do you want?
Claims? I really can’t believe you. It’s just laughable.
Dr. J, I hope most Dems don’t think the way the far left represented here do. And, I’m sure Obama believes in small businesses or why else would he have continued in guaranteeing loans (started under Bush) to companies like Solyndra.
And, no, I don’t think there was anything unethical, just a bad business decision). (Issa, is just doing his finger pointing thing, shame.)My point is we need to encourage all small businesses not just green ones.
This isn’t even pretending to be Dem. it’s way to the left of anything in mainstream politics.
By the way the “Feeding his family” comment isn’t about actually feeding anyone. He stated that he takes a 200k salary, not bad but not extreme when you look at a businesses that gross over 6 mill and put 500 people to work. Compare that to a doctor or lawyer and it makes him look pretty altruistic. True he does have the value of the businesses themselves which is a good thing otherwise it doesn’t seem worth the effort. His businesses make 600k after taxes. Subtracting his salary that leaves 400k which he reinvests in expanding his businesses which increases employment further. Leaving him less money causes him to create less jobs. No one was asking for sympathy just that in his case raising taxes on “the rich” would decrease jobs.
Allen, proof would require isolating the tax cuts from all the other factors that have brought us to where we are today. Like financial deregulation, the housing bubble, health care inflation, and our spending spree on wars, pensions, medicare part D, the stimulus, and various bailouts.
It’s hard to believe they do. So where do the liberals hang out who are interested in discussing policy calmly?
There are some here, but not enough currently.