Where tax policy meets politics — legislation, elections, and the debates in Washington that decide how (and how much) you’re taxed.
Because, at this point, I have to think the answer is no. After a string of Obama nominees disclosed tax issues – including confirmed Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and failed nominees Tom Daschle and Nancy Killefer – yet another has been revealed. Ron Kirk, Obama’s nomination for U.S. Trade Representative, owes an estimated $10,000 in…
If you missed Obama’s State of the Nation speech, you can read the full text here. The GOP response to the speech was delivered by Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal. You can read the full text of his response here. According to CNN, 68% of those polled immediately after the speech had a “very positive” reaction…
A number of Republican governors have indicated that they will turn down federal money offered to states as part of the stimulus package. The Republican governors of Alaska, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas have signaled that they will pass on the money because it could lead to a tax increase in the future….
President Obama has issued a target date for the adjusted withholding to begin as part of the stimulus package: April 1. Obama mentioned the date in his weekly radio address, saying: I’m pleased to announce that this morning the Treasury Department began directing employers to reduce the amount of taxes withheld from paychecks, meaning that…
One of the most controversial measures in the soon-to-be-law American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 has nothing to do with tax cuts, earmarks or CEO pay caps. But the inclusion of one little sentence has set off a firestorm of complaints all over the world. The sentence? None of the funds appropriated or otherwise…
It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something. – Franklin D. Roosevelt Clearly, something isn’t working in America. With mounting job losses, creeping retail sales, record foreclosures, it was clear that something had to change. What wasn’t abundantly…
I’m not going to issue a complete report on the stimulus plan until the ink on the signature page is dry (Obama plans to sign the final version of the bill on Monday). But for now, here are some fun stat facts about the bill: Number of pages in the bill: 680 (editor’s note: the…
A version of the stimulus bill passed the Senate today with a final vote of 61-37. Three GOP Senators broke with the majority and voted with Senate Democrats: Susan Collins (R-ME), Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Arlen Specter (R-PA). But House Republicans may not be so friendly. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said that the…
As of this evening (Monday), it seems that the Senate version of the housing bill will make it intact to the vote tomorrow. And you know that I’m not a fan. I promised that I’d explain why I think it’s a bad idea. It’s taken a few extra days (yes, a plague of biblical proportions…
As the stimulus plan works its way through the Senate, it appears to be losing popularity among US taxpayers. At the end of 2008, taxpayers were clamoring for a stimulus package, although there was not a lot of agreement as to what should be included. So Congress and President Obama went to work. What has…