It’s time for our annual review! Here are my picks for the top stories on taxgirl.com for the year:
10, Dancing With The Stars champ and race car driver Helio Castroneves is indicted on federal tax evasion charges. In a related story, my mother is stricken with grief and may never samba again (okay, I’m not sure that she sambaed before but I’m pretty sure that this will end any chance).
9, Prop 8 in California passes and prompts the promise of tax boycotts by the gay and lesbian community.
8, taxgirl endorsed Obama for President. I was both roundly cheered and jeered for my picks but stand behind my choice. One of my most controversial and commented posts of the year.
7, Tax evaders hit the slopes. A massive tax fraud investigation in Germany, the UK, the US and other countries points the finger at the tiny Alpine principality of Liechtenstein. I am elated to finally have a reason to prove that I can spell Liechtenstein.
6, After Congress says no, President Bush says yes and earmarks taxpayer dollars to save the Big 3 automakers. As a result, Fiat misses its chance to hit it big in the US.
5, Wesley Snipes is acquitted of tax fraud. Remarkably, the world did not end, though we will now be subjected to more of his movies.
4, Congress commits US taxpayers to a remarkable bailout package. Treasury Secretary Paulson is now more powerful than Oprah.
3, The “biggest tax fraud ever” tax trial finally reaches an end. Out of the original 19 defendants involved in the spectacle that was the KPMG trial, only 3 were eventually convicted.
2, Rebates, rebates and rebates. I probably posted the most – and received the most comments – about this year’s rebate checks. Taxpayers were confused about the amount of the check, set-offs, when checks might arrive and more. An overwhelming majority of Americans admitting to being as cynical about the chances of the checks stimulating the economy as they are about Paula Abdul “just being tired.”
1, taxgirl gets a nod by the editors of the American Bar Association in the ABA Journal Blawg 100 for 2008. In case you missed it before, voting by readers for the best of the blawgs runs through January 2 – just click to vote. And no, this tidbit never gets old (not for me, anyway)!
So those are my picks for the year. What did you like? What did you hate? And what did I miss?
In a surprise move, the Bush administration has indicated that it might use taxpayer dollars previously earmarked for banks through the Troubled Asset Relief Program or TARP, to save the Big 3 automakers.
No, no, don’t read it again. You got it right the first time.
The White House had initially said “no way” to the auto industry pleas for a bailout. Maybe it’s the snow falling outside, maybe it’s the holiday spirit… or maybe it’s just the crappy economy… but the administration has now reversed its position on the automakers bailout.
The announcement came one day after the Senate voted no on a bailout.
The White House warned that a “precipitous collapse of this industry would have a severe impact on our economy” and said:
Given the current weakened state of the U.S. economy, we will consider other options if necessary — including use of the TARP program — to prevent a collapse of troubled automakers.
Details – including how much and how fast – haven’t been made available yet.
GM, of course, was thrilled. GM claims that it will need $4 billion in government aid by the end of the year – and $6 billion more in early 2009. Chrysler has indicated that it needs $4 billion in 2009. Ford Motors says that it anticipates that it can hold on through the end of the year and most of 2009 (rumor has it – and it’s just rumor – that the company has been kept afloat by my own family who has continuously owned Fords for as long as I can remember, including two ugly-colored Pinto station wagons and one deep blue Granada with vinyl seats).
So, it’s holiday cheers all around, right?
Not quite. Notwithstanding the idea that many in Congress, including Republicans, are reportedly angry at Bush for stepping in at the 11th hour, there are practical issues. Only half of the TARP money is available without further approval from Congress – that was part of the original deal with the Treasury. Only $15 billion of the $350 billion remains – it is, after all, the season of spending. So, the ultimate say will go back to Congress in early January for approval. Whether Congress is ready for a compromise at that time is anyone’s guess.
What is clear is that the automotive industry is breathing a sigh of relief from a near miss this holiday season. Whether voters – who are also taxpayers and consumers – will agree is another matter altogether.
It’s Fix the Tax Code Friday!
For most of the week, the headlines have involved the crisis in the automotive industry with eyes on the “Big Three”: Ford, General Motors (GM) and Chrysler. Execs from the Big Three jetted to DC to beg lawmakers for loans worth billions of dollars, warning that the failure to deliver the loans could spell disaster for the industry and related commerce.
Congress refused to vote on the bailout, citing a lack of a restructuring plan from any of the three motor giants. Congressional leader Harry Reid has given the Big Three a deadline of December 2 to come back to Congress with a workable plan.
One version of a bailout would use $25 billion in funds from the Energy Department structured as a loan. The funds were previously earmarked for development of fuel-efficient vehicles. Repayments by the industry would serve to replenish the fund.
Another version of an auto industry bailout would take funds already promised to the banking industry as part of that $700 billion bailout.
Either version would rely on the immediate use of taxpayer funds, which is causing consternation in Congress. Funding for the next fiscal year is already tight which means that services may be cut and taxes may be raised in an effort to “right the ship” and settle the budget. With a majority of Americans unhappy with Congress right now, lawmakers don’t want to dig themselves an even bigger hole. But not acting at all could have a similar effect since so much of the American economy is related to the automotive industry.
So today’s Fix the Tax Code question is:
Should the government bailout the auto industry using taxpayer dollars? And if so, which version of the package sounds best – or do you have another idea altogether?
