One Chart That Shows What The Bush Tax Cut Battle Is All About

[kentay]

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/07/bush-tax-cuts-chart-obama.php?ref=fpb

[RWE]

Here's what happened. Obama took office in Jan 2009. At that time the Democrats controlled both houses of Congress and the Presidency. They could have changed the tax rate at any time they desired. Approximately two years later, the democrat controlled House and Senate passed a bill extending the so-called Bush tax cuts to after the 2012 election. So you see, the Democrats ensured  that the tax cuts would remain in place for the entire 4 years of Obama's first term. Let's call them the Obama era tax cuts because Obama has owned them since day one.
Now we have Obama shamelessly running against his own record and playing class warfare to get re-elected. I wonder if anyone is so ill-informed that they would fall for this.

[Ted S]

RWE is dead on.  For two years the Democrats had the House, the Senate, and the White House in and could have raised taxes until the cows-came-home but they didn't have the political will.

But what a dandy chart you found Kentay!  It clearly shows that the wealthiest will get the largest reduction in taxes.  Too bad it doesn't show the whole picture though.  What's missing is the fact that the bottom 47% pay no income taxes whatsoever.  True, they're not getting a reduction, but then it's pretty hard to cut the taxes of a guy who pays nothing at all.

Hey, how come that guy over there got a 10% discount and I didn't? Well, it's because he paid for his ticket and you got yours for free.

But nice job of cherry-picking Kentay. The prime-time blowhards over at MSNBC would be proud of you.

[wbcoleman]

Let's have a vote on extending the current rates on everyone.  It passes the House easily; what happens in the Senate?  I say it carries a majority with the votes of Democrats such as Claire McCaskill, Jon Tester, Jim Webb, Ben Nelson, Joe Manchin, and who knows else.  Then let O veto it!

[kentay]

RWE is dead on.  For two years the Democrats had the House, the Senate, and the White House in and could have raised taxes until the cows-came-home but they didn't have the political will.

But what a dandy chart you found Kentay!  It clearly shows that the wealthiest will get the largest reduction in taxes.  Too bad it doesn't show the whole picture though.  What's missing is the fact that the bottom 47% pay no income taxes whatsoever.  True, they're not getting a reduction, but then it's pretty hard to cut the taxes of a guy who pays nothing at all.

Hey, how come that guy over there got a 10% discount and I didn't? Well, it's because he paid for his ticket and you got yours for free.

But nice job of cherry-picking Kentay. The prime-time blowhards over at MSNBC would be proud of you.

Ted, correct me if I am wrong but I believe it was Nixon who started the Income tax Credit. Reagan, Bush, Clinton Bush and Obama all support it. Yet you a Christian man wants the poor to gravel for basic substance from you,  their master. kentay 

[Ted S]

Yet you a Christian man wants the poor to gravel for basic substance from you,  their master. kentay

I'm not their master and they don't need to grovel. The poor should do everything they can to pull themselves up by the bootstraps and as a last resort, perhaps some coerced charity would be in order.

[kentay]

Yet you a Christian man wants the poor to gravel for basic substance from you,  their master. kentay

I'm not their master and they don't need to grovel. The poor should do everything they can to pull themselves up by the bootstraps and as a last resort, perhaps some coerced charity would be in order.

Don't you think most of the poor are helping themselves with two and three jobs,  in our Capitalistic Society? I really wonder what Christ would say? kentay 

[wbcoleman]

Yet you a Christian man wants the poor to gravel for basic substance from you,  their master. kentay

I'm not their master and they don't need to grovel. The poor should do everything they can to pull themselves up by the bootstraps and as a last resort, perhaps some coerced charity would be in order.

Don't you think most of the poor are helping themselves with two and three jobs,  in our Capitalistic Society? I really wonder what Christ would say? kentay 

I wonder what actual data would say.  Do you have any?

[kentay]

Yet you a Christian man wants the poor to gravel for basic substance from you,  their master. kentay

I'm not their master and they don't need to grovel. The poor should do everything they can to pull themselves up by the bootstraps and as a last resort, perhaps some coerced charity would be in order.

Don't you think most of the poor are helping themselves with two and three jobs,  in our Capitalistic Society? I really wonder what Christ would say? kentay 

I wonder what actual data would say.  Do you have any?

[wbcoleman]

I'm having trouble reading the graph.  Where's the axis for "number of jobs"?

Anyway, what's the point you're trying to make?