Millionaires to Washington: More Taxes, Please!

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Jan 28, 2009
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A pack of millionaires descended on Washington, DC, Wednesday to tell Congress to take more of their money. The Patriotic Millionaires for Fiscal Strength, a group formed in 2010 to push Obama to allow the Bush tax cuts on millionaires to expire, are back, and lobbying for the same thing as Congress faces the looming fiscal cliff.

A dozen or so 1-percenters, representing the group's total membership of about 200, are meeting with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle this week to deliver the message that "we care as much about our country as we do about our money," and that any budget agreement Congress cobbles together in the coming weeks should include fat taxes on the rich.

At a press conference to kick off the campaign Wednesday, Frank Patitucci, CEO of NuCompass Mobility, explained why the group is seemingly advocating against its own interests. "We believe we've been able to achieve our circumstance in life because of the vibrancy of the American system we live under. Right now we're in danger of losing some of what has been valuable to us." He noted that Americans like him often pay lower tax rates than, say a middle-income single mom with two kids. "We're losing the opportunity to achieve the American dream the way we have," he said.

Garrett Gruener, a venture capitalist and entrepreneur from Oakland, California, laid out the specifics of their demands: allow top tax rates to return to Clinton-era rates of 39.6 percent, and create a new tax bracket for those who make over $10 million; let taxes on capital gains return to Clinton-era levels of between 20 and 28 percent; tax dividends at the same rate as ordinary income; bring back a hefty estate tax; and limit itemized deductions for the wealthiest Americans.

The millionaires are quick to point out that they are not just a bunch of bleeding-heart libs. They're a coalition of Democrats, Republicans, and Independents who see upping taxes on the rich as a practicality, not charity.

"I'm acting out of selfishness," said Woody Kaplan, a businessman from Boston (who incidentally voted for Gary Johnson for president). "With every business I've owned, customers have been terribly important. If we give the middle class a break, then we're much more likely to grow the middle class, and that will make all of us stronger."

That sounds nice, but what about all that GOP grumbling that higher taxes on the rich will curb job creation? Balderdash, says Gruener. "Their theory is by reducing my tax rates, I'll do more to create jobs. It just isn't true. If I thought they were right about that I'd be on their side of this negotiation. But my own experience as a venture capitalist is that this sort of investment they're talking about, in fact, has nothing to do with marginal tax rates."

T.J. Zlotnitsky, Chairman and CEO of iControl Systems, agreed. "When it's time for my company to hire someone, I don't make a decision based on my personal tax rate. It's based on what my customers need. It's whether we see a new opportunity, a new concept."

The Patriotic Millionaires are meeting with nine Dems and three Republican legislators over two days. When asked how exactly they planned to convince the GOP to include the millionaires' plan in a budget compromise, Zlotnitsky appeared almost offended by the idea that their proposal was partisan. "There's an assumption that everyone here is of one political persuasion," he said. "I don't think it's about that. I think it's about putting Americans first. Putting country ahead of our party. The message is that people who are fortunate in this country such as ourselves are prepared to do more for our country. Now it's up to [the GOP] to be patriotic as well."
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Source.
 


The millionaires are quick to point out that they are not just a bunch of bleeding-heart libs. They're a coalition of Democrats, Republicans, and Independents who see upping taxes on the rich as a practicality, not charity.
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These are arguably the most economically ignorant, not to mention financially clueless and morally suspect people outside the American political process.

Until government spending is brought under control, throwing more of their fiat dollars into the roaring inferno of government waste is ridiculous.

Is there any more disgusting a citizen who wants everyone to be taxed more, but hasn't already cut his check, or claims every deduction he can?
 
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How do more taxes help our country?

Why don't they just pay more, hell why not pay their selves into poverty and then they can get the money back via welfare checks!
 
Nothing is stopping them from hopping over to the Treasury website and donating through their "Gifts to Reduce the Public Debt." Of course that doesn't come with the same thrill of going to Washington and convincing politicians to do it with the use of force.

Besides, it's too early in the morning to do the math, but I'm fairly confident that increasing taxation on the wealthy is going to do fuckall to reduce the debt.
 
Peter Schiff absolutely destroyed one of these "Patriotic Millionaires" by asking him if he used an accountant to file his taxes, and if so why?

The guy said he did, so that "he could make sure everything was done correctly"

1040EZ is the most "patriotic" way you can file, so why is this asshole using a CPA to hunt for deductions?

Because he's a goddamn hypocrite.
 
this article reeks propaganda



why don't those "patriotic millionaires" just send in a check to the us treasury?
 
You idiots keep making this argument - "if they want to pay more tax, why don't they just write a check to the government?" When it should be plain as fucking day that of course they don't want to pay more taxes - who does? What they want is to change the rules so that everyone that makes as much as they do pays more taxes even though it's not in their short term best interest. Why? Because they believe it's in their (and/or the majority of people's) long term best interest. A few dozen/hundred millionaires donating a little extra to the federal government isn't going to do jack shit. Changing the rules on who pays how much will.

Or you can be a conspiratard about it and believe it's a secret communist scheme to destroy the upper middle class/non-illuminati wealthy and bring about a totalitarian socialist one world order.
 
Meatytreats said:
Sry, but you're fucking retarded if you believe that!
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I don't personally know whether it'll make a significant difference. Ask a roomful of trained economists and I'm sure you'll get a spectrum of differing answers. The point was, that's what these millionaires ostensibly believe.
 
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