It is the Reagan tax plan that began our ballooning deficits (hence Ronnie dumped it his first year) - Edit 2
Before modification by Joel at 17/10/2012 05:33:45 AM
Any doubt of that was banished when Romney invoked it by name tonight. While the Reagan seal makes it irresistible to Republicans, there are two huge problems:
1) The Reagan tax cuts and budgets were intentionally designed to create huge federal debt, which could then be used to justify abolishing Social Security and Medicare. Unfortunately, the public responded by demanding the entitlements AND tax cuts, financed by the Social Security trust fund surplus (then quite large because all the Baby Boomers were working.) The result is that US federal debt just under $1 trillion in 1981 is now $16 trillion, and Social Security is bankrupt now that the Boomers are retired and drawing out instead of paying into it.
2) In the '90s and '00s, Republicans exacerbated the problem by demanding many credits and deductions as middle class "tax relief;" now they complain the recipients are "takers," part of the half of America that pays no taxes (because the GOP eliminated them.) As with Romneys "plan", eliminating deductions, credits and a couple brackets was the keystone of Reagans 1981 tax "reform," to simplify the tax code. When Romney says he will follow Reagans plan he is saying he will get rid of the mortgage tax credit and slash the child tax credit just as Reagan got rid of credits and deductions before him. When Reagan did it the richest paid less taxes, the poorest paid MORE, federal debt tripled and even Reagan backed off by the end of his first year in office. Why would it work any better now?
The AA folks have a saying (actually, they have hordes:) "If you keep doing what you did, you keep getting what you got."
1) The Reagan tax cuts and budgets were intentionally designed to create huge federal debt, which could then be used to justify abolishing Social Security and Medicare. Unfortunately, the public responded by demanding the entitlements AND tax cuts, financed by the Social Security trust fund surplus (then quite large because all the Baby Boomers were working.) The result is that US federal debt just under $1 trillion in 1981 is now $16 trillion, and Social Security is bankrupt now that the Boomers are retired and drawing out instead of paying into it.
2) In the '90s and '00s, Republicans exacerbated the problem by demanding many credits and deductions as middle class "tax relief;" now they complain the recipients are "takers," part of the half of America that pays no taxes (because the GOP eliminated them.) As with Romneys "plan", eliminating deductions, credits and a couple brackets was the keystone of Reagans 1981 tax "reform," to simplify the tax code. When Romney says he will follow Reagans plan he is saying he will get rid of the mortgage tax credit and slash the child tax credit just as Reagan got rid of credits and deductions before him. When Reagan did it the richest paid less taxes, the poorest paid MORE, federal debt tripled and even Reagan backed off by the end of his first year in office. Why would it work any better now?
The AA folks have a saying (actually, they have hordes:) "If you keep doing what you did, you keep getting what you got."