Monday, July 26, 2010

Geithner Favors Allowing Tax Cuts for the "Wealthy" to Expire

From Examiner.com:

In another move sure to up the ante in the perceived class warfare being waged by the Obama administration, Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner has said that he is favorably disposed to allowing the present tax cuts for the "wealthiest people" to expire.

He calls it the "responsible thing to do", although most Blue Dog Democrats and Republicans would disagree, as they see it as a failed economic policy (increasing taxes on the wealthiest people) that would only hurt economic growth, in the long run.

While speaking on ABC's "This Week" this morning, Geithner professed that allowing the tax cuts to expire would send a signal to the world that the United States was willing as a country, to take concrete steps, necessary to reducing long-term budget deficits.

What he however failed to propose was how exactly the government intended to make up for the still expected shortfall, as the so-called wealthiest people already pay close to two-thirds of the taxes.

The truth is that invariably, higher taxes on the wealthiest people, will end up hurting the economy in the long run as the latter will withdraw or significantly reduce their charitable donations, thus negatively impacting the non-profit sector of the economy.