TAX POLITIX
The Politics of Taxes
The Stimulus is Unconstitutional
The most recent stimulus package gives money to one segment of the population by taking money from another segment of the population. Since wealth transfers cannot reasonably be inferred as any of the acts allowable by the federal government under the Constitution, the Stimulus Act is blatantly unconstitutional. The recent stimulus checks from the federal government are a pure, vote buying giveaway. Neither need nor negative impact from Covid are factors in getting these payments. While some...
Senator Warren’s Wealth Tax: A Study in Economic Ignorance
On February 2nd Senator Elizabeth Warren announced that she will join the Senate Finance Committee, the committee tasked with writing this country’s tax laws. She stated, "I'm very pleased to join the Finance Committee, where I'll continue to fight on behalf of working families and press giant corporations, the wealthy, and the well-connected to finally pay their fair share in taxes.” Warren has often advocated for a wealth tax in the past, especially during her campaign last year for the...
What Everyone Was Getting Wrong About Gamestop
Gamestop stock may be fundamentally worth $10, or maybe even $20 if there is some hidden value in intangibles or some future prospects. But not $400. The only question is whether those buying at $400 truly had reason to believe that it was worth that amount (which is probably unlikely). Or were they just buying in the hope that the price would go up more irrationally, allowing them to make a profit before the stock tanked? Those that were just blindly following the crowd simply deserve what...
Another Reason Against Additional Stimulus Payments
Proposed legislation in Congress has at its core the addition of $1400 per person (on top of the $600 already passed in other legislation) creating a $2,000 per person payment. Its purpose is stated to be to “stimulate the economy” even though what we actually need to focus on is getting more people back to work. The prospect of giving out an additional $1400 payment is absolute insanity. We don’t need it, as we have the highest rate of savings right now that we’ve had in a long time....
Stakeholder Capitalism: Not Really
Stakeholder capitalism is all the rage these days, with Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders at the forefront of the movement. Their participation is just another example of their economic ignorance. The concept of stakeholder capitalism is itself a contradiction in terms; it would be more correct to call it “stakeholderism.” Just like crony capitalism (it is really just “cronyism”) isn’t real, as the terms are opposites of one another, the same with stakeholder capitalism. You...
The Eviction Moratorium is Unconstitutional
It is undeniable that people are hurting from COVID. It is also untenable that one of the continued solutions is an ongoing moratorium on evictions. Such a policy would seem to be blatantly unconstitutional. A national moratorium on evictions picks winners and losers by government fiat by preferring one population (renters) over another population (landlords). The moratorium continues to allow people to live in their spaces without paying what they are contractually obligated to pay, putting...
Why Buybacks are Not Bad
A company will try to use its available funds to best improve its business, such as by expanding its operations, hiring additional workers, opening new factories and offices, research & development including creating new products, paying down debt, or acquiring new companies. But when it decides that it has more money than it could put to good use in its business, it can use the money in various ways. It could pay dividends. But another option is to buy back some of its shares...
Thoughts On the Eviction Moratorium
The current national moratorium on evictions (which is likely to be extended yet again) is problematic for several reasons. The CDC (of all agencies) issued its rule without any particular act of Congress granting it the power to do so under the auspices of a generic “public health and safety” threat. What’s more, the federal eviction ban essentially overtakes any and all existing laws between tenants and landlords at the state level.Because of the moratorium, landlords are now unable to...
Warnock and Racism
I was disappointed that a black socialist anti-Semite became a Senator of the United States. While it is well known that he is a progressive and socialist, it’s even more troubling that he is openly anti-Semitic.In 2019, he signed a letter with other clergy members describing “the heavy militarization of the West Bank, reminiscent of the military occupation of Namibia by apartheid South Africa.” Likewise, during a sermon in 2018, he proclaimed, “We saw the government of Israel shoot down...
Thoughts on Qualified Immunity
There is a renewed push for ending qualified immunity especially since the unrest earlier this summer. Qualified immunity affords police officers protection from litigation for their actions in pursuit of the law, while immunity is lost if an officer violates a citizen’s constitutional rights. At least, that is what qualified immunity was before it metastasized into a near entitlement shield for officers and other public officials. Qualified immunity does not need to be abolished but it should...
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Bernie Sander’s Tax Plan: Reduces Income and Hikes Taxes
With Bernie Sanders doing well against Hillary Clinton for the Democrat nomination, it's a great time to look at some of the specifics of his tax plan. The Tax Foundation studied the affects of the major changes (listed below). Their analysis found...
PSA: IRS Suffers Hardware Failure
The IRS announced this morning that a hardware failure occurred sometime yesterday afternoon; because of this, tax processing systems are not currently not functioning correctly. As a result of the failure, the IRS is unable to accept tax returns...
More Capital Gains Distortions
The article written by Josh Zumbrun of the Wall Street Journal on December 31, entitled, "Tax Rate for Top 400 Taxpayers Climbed in 2013," should have been fairly straightforward with interesting data on that particular tax demographic....
The IRS Admits to Erasing Another Important Hard Drive
The IRS is involved in another "erased hard drive" event -- and it's not a part of the IRS scandal of 2013. It is apparent that there is a pattern of destruction at the agency. This time, the hard drive that was erased belonged to "Samuel Maruca,...