The Maine Wire
  • News
  • Commentary
  • Maine Wire TV
  • Podcasts
  • About
  • Contact
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Trending News
  • Portland Public Schools Enrolled More Than 300 Homeless Students for 2022-2023 School Year
  • State Rep Mike Soboleski Officially Announces Campaign for Maine’s Second Congressional District
  • Mills Directs $6.5 Million of COVID-Era Funds to Maine Electrical Grid Upgrades, Favoring ‘Minority and Ethnically Diverse’ Business Owners
  • “Insurance Fraud is Not a Victimless Crime”: Senior House Republican Calls for Mills Admin to Investigate Troy Jackson’s Insurance Practices
  • Bar Harbor Town Council Unanimously Dissolves Cruise Ship Committee
  • Who is Hansjörg Wyss, the Swiss National Bankrolling Progressive Media and Politics in Maine?
  • Another One: False Report of Armed Student on Private School Campus Sends Neighboring Public Schools into Lockdown Tuesday Morning
  • Biden DHS Secretary Appoints Ex-Intel Officials Who Lied About Hunter Biden’s ‘Laptop from hell’ to New DHS ‘Experts Group’
Facebook Twitter Instagram
The Maine Wire
Login
Thursday, September 21
  • News
  • Commentary
  • Maine Wire TV
  • Podcasts
  • About
  • Contact
The Maine Wire
Home » News » Democrats Coordinate National Campaign to Lie About Fair Tax Bill
Commentary

Democrats Coordinate National Campaign to Lie About Fair Tax Bill

Steve RobinsonBy Steve RobinsonJanuary 27, 2023Updated:January 27, 2023No Comments3 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter Email LinkedIn Reddit
Simple-Visible-Efficient tax reform
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Democratic politicians and activists appear to have coordinated a nationwide campaign to mislead taxpayers about a proposal from Republican lawmakers that would transition the federal government to relying on sales tax rather than a host of other taxes.

The so-called Fair Tax is an idea that has circulated for years in conservative communities, and the proposal is more wonkish than controversial.

The idea is to eliminate federal income taxes, payroll taxes, estate and gift taxes, and replace all of them with a national sales tax.

The plan also creates a credit system so that no one ends up paying taxes on life’s basic necessities.

But high-ranking Democrats this week launched a campaign to make it seem as though Republicans were only interested in creating a new 30 percent sales tax. Dozens and dozens of tweets from Democratic politicians provided a cynical, one-sided, and manipulative take on the bill.

Extreme MAGA Republicans are trying to impose a 30% sales tax on the American people.

We will stop them.

— Hakeem Jeffries (@RepJeffries) January 26, 2023

President Biden just called out Republicans, exposing their dangerous plan to raise gas prices and impose a 30 percent national sales tax.

“NOT ON MY WATCH.” President Biden is done playing nice with these Republicans.
pic.twitter.com/ZBLiyNJfPg

— DemsMight 🇺🇸 (@demsmight) January 26, 2023

MAGA Republicans are refusing to show their plan to address the debt ceiling

Instead they're talking up one of the worst policy proposals in existence:

A 30% national sales tax on EVERYTHING

It just shows how radical and out-of-touch they are

— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) January 26, 2023

A 30% national sales tax

A 30 PERCENT NATIONAL SALES TAX

A

30

Percent

National

Sales

Tax

— Chris Murphy 🟧 (@ChrisMurphyCT) January 18, 2023

Republicans are willing to blow up the economy and raise everyone’s costs over a debt limit we wouldn’t be hitting if Republicans/Trump didn’t cut taxes for the ultra-wealthy.

And now they want everyone to pay a 30% sales tax? Come on.

— Sheldon Whitehouse (@SenWhitehouse) January 25, 2023

House Republicans are pushing for a 30% national sales tax.

Taxing the middle-class on thousands of everyday items from groceries to gas. And in the process – cutting taxes for the wealthiest.

What in God’s name is that all about?

— President Biden (@POTUS) January 26, 2023

Hold on: House Republicans want a national 30% sales tax on everything from groceries to gasoline? They want to raise taxes on working-class & middle-class families while slashing them for millionaires & billionaires?

Are they TRYING to show exactly how out of touch they are?

— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) January 19, 2023

The Fair Tax perhaps the most progressive tax program debated in recent years, meaning it disproportionately draws revenue from the most wealthy Americans. Because wealthy Americans tend to spend more, they will be taxed more. And those on the lower end of the income spectrum will end up paying very little tax after the credits are applied.

But if you considered only the coordinate Tweet campaign from Democratic bigwigs, you would never know that the Fair Tax is actually better for low income Americans than the current complex, overwrought system.

The Fair Tax would also bring about a philosophical and psychological shift in how Americans think about taxation. Right now, income taxes and payroll taxes disappear from paychecks before most workers even realize it through withholding. That makes the payment of those taxes less immediate: out of sight, out of mind. But with a national sales tax, every tax payment would be a deliberate act.

The Fair Tax would also be a tremendous boon to freedom because individuals will only be taxed when they choose to purchase goods or services. Advocates for the policy also believe it will have tremendous economic benefits by removing the stifling effects of income taxes.

What are the drawbacks of the Fair Tax? Critics say it would open the door for a lot of tax cheating and sneakiness. Just think: an unscrupulous vendor could offer goods 30 percent cheaper for skipping out on sales tax collection. They also argue that the bill would effectively turn every business into a tax collections agent, though that’s already happening in most states.

Does the bill have any chance of passing? Probably not. The defining characteristic of the Fair Tax is simplicity, but a simplistic tax code is harder for accountants and lawyers to exploit. Indeed, some Fair Tax advocates have suggested that the reform would quite likely put almost all corporate accountants out of jobs.

The interests who benefit from complex, arcane tax codes are very powerful, and the last thing they’d want to see is a simple tax code that all Americans can understand.

Previous ArticleLetter: South Portland’s Anti-Semitism Problem
Next Article Brunswick Junior High Kids Learn Flags for 15 Different Genders and Sexualities
Steve Robinson
  • Twitter

Steve Robinson is the Editor-in-Chief of The Maine Wire. ‪He can be reached by email at Robinson@TheMaineWire.com.

Related Posts

Who is Hansjörg Wyss, the Swiss National Bankrolling Progressive Media and Politics in Maine?

September 20, 2023

The Road to Manhood: V. Paul Reynolds

September 20, 2023

Commentary: The Constitution Is Not Optional

September 18, 2023

Leave A Reply

Recent News

Portland Public Schools Enrolled More Than 300 Homeless Students for 2022-2023 School Year

September 21, 2023

State Rep Mike Soboleski Officially Announces Campaign for Maine’s Second Congressional District

September 21, 2023

Mills Directs $6.5 Million of COVID-Era Funds to Maine Electrical Grid Upgrades, Favoring ‘Minority and Ethnically Diverse’ Business Owners

September 21, 2023

“Insurance Fraud is Not a Victimless Crime”: Senior House Republican Calls for Mills Admin to Investigate Troy Jackson’s Insurance Practices

September 21, 2023

Bar Harbor Town Council Unanimously Dissolves Cruise Ship Committee

September 20, 2023
Newsletter

News

  • News
  • Campaigns & Elections
  • Opinion & Commentary
  • Media Watch
  • Education
  • Media

Maine Wire

  • About the Maine Wire
  • Advertising
  • Contact Us
  • Submit Commentary
  • Complaints
  • Maine Policy Institute

Resources

  • Maine Legislature
  • Legislation Finder
  • Get the Newsletter
  • Maine Wire TV

Facebook Twitter Instagram Steam RSS
  • Post Office Box 7829, Portland, Maine 04112

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

Sign In or Register

Welcome Back!

Login below or Register Now.

Lost password?

Register Now!

Already registered? Login.

A password will be e-mailed to you.