Richard WarnickMcCain’s Proposed Tax Increase
Senator McCain is fond of saying in just about every speech that, unlike him, Barack Obama “wants to raise your taxes.” This is not true unless you make over $600,000 a year. But what about McCain’s tax increase proposal? What, you didn’t know?
John McCain wants to tax your employer-provided health care benefits. He wants to replace those benefits with an insufficient tax credit–$2500 for individuals and $5000 for families (the average cost per family for health insurance is $12000).
This morning on ABC’s “This Week,” George Stephanopoulos asked McCain about this.
Igor Volsky on Think Progress points out that McCain’s health insurance tax plan would hit the middle class hardest:
For a couple earning $40,000 and paying $13,800 for insurance, “McCain’s new tax credit would cut their taxes by $50 in 2009, but because the credit quickly falls behind rising premiums that are the basis of the current tax break, the family would pay $1,169 more in taxes in 2013…[and] would pay $2,809 more in taxes by 2018.”
“I want to look you in the eye: I will not raise your taxes nor support a tax increase,’’ McCain promised at a town hall meeting last July. “I will not do it.’’ Yet, all along he has advocated this new tax on employer-provided health insurance and he also said “nothing’s off the table” when asked about raising payroll taxes.
September 29th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
Wait - I thought tax increases were good. No?
Can you make up your mind, Richard?
September 29th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
There is a difference between tax increases on millionaires, who can afford to pay, and middle class families, who can’t. Duh.
September 29th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
Richard,
Can you help me understand Obama’s “reduce taxes for 95% of the people” comments?
40% of people pay into income tax but get all of it back or get even more money back, how can he reduce taxes for them?
Obama wants to raise taxes on corporations and businesses. Will the businesses or corporations reduce their profits or pass on the tax increases as higher prices?
People pay taxes on things they buy or use. So the prices increase, causing higher sales taxes…..so how does that reduce taxes for people?
September 29th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
Bob S. details, details, you are messing with the messiah now, and he was able to turn a few loaves and fishes into a repast for 5000.
Obama can do this and more. Obama can lower taxes for everyone and still increase federal revenues! No, that was Reagan.
Well anyway, it is just a little matter of working on the water into wine trick, once that happens, America will be so drunk no one will notice.
September 29th, 2008 at 6:08 pm
Bob S.– I used to say we ought to ignore all the candidate’s domestic policy proposals except for tax cuts, because you can always get Congress to pass a tax cut. Now, I’m not so sure given the state of the federal deficit, with the National Debt soaring toward the $10 trillion mark. So don’t count on tax cuts.
September 29th, 2008 at 6:31 pm
Richard,
I take it by your non-answer that you can’t answer the question?
I’m seriously trying to understand this and the numbers don’t add up. Where is the media coverage on it?
Shouldn’t the biased “right wing” media be all over this?
I said before there is only a 50-50 chance of McCain trying for any tax cuts but with Obama I see absolutely no chances.
So, who is going to grow the government the least?
September 29th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
I’m hoping President Obama will be true to his word and will only raise taxes for the top 2.5% of income tax filers. I’m not counting on a tax cut, like I said.
You ask who’s going to grow the government the least? Where have you been? The Bush administration has given new meaning to the words “fiscal irresponsibility.” This year, Bush ran a near-record deficit of $407 billion. Analysis by the Center for American Progress shows, under McCain, “yearly deficits would increase sharply, beginning with $505 billion” in 2009.
Barack Obama at least makes a stab at paying for his policy proposals. The Wall Street Journal noted that Obama’s Plan Adds Up, Probably.
September 29th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
These past 2 years, Congress, solely responsible for approving the Federal budgets, has twice elected to expand these deficits without any concern apparently for future renumeration from anyone but the taxpayer.
No amount of blaming presidents from now to the next one is going to change this fundamental fact of how it is we have arrived at these deficits. The partisan posturing by now in the face of bankruptcy is once again full evidence of why democrats are not fit to rule.
We are bound where we are headed, we can no more expect balanced budgets from an Obama presidency when Bush can get his with Democrat Congressional compliance. The only way after all, the budgets created by the Oval Office can actually stumble into this broke(n) reality.
7th Grade Civics in a faraway land, from a time, not so long ago.
September 30th, 2008 at 11:51 pm
Did you say, “Duh”?
And you didn’t clarify, are tax increases good or bad?
Or are the only good tax increases the ones that others pay??
October 1st, 2008 at 3:28 am
Richard,
Any sources for comparison that aren’t biased? Thinkprogress is a very liberal organization, might that shade their outcome just a little bit?
October 1st, 2008 at 9:54 am
Bob S.– You have a better source, I’d like to see it. McCain can’t balance the budget with smoke and mirrors.
October 1st, 2008 at 10:06 am
And Mr. Obama IS promising to balance the budget? Show me that canard, Richard.
Is this before or after he walks on water?
October 1st, 2008 at 10:23 am
Here’s a better source, Richard.
October 1st, 2008 at 10:34 am
Did I say Obama would balance the budget? No. It can’t be done for many, many years thanks to Bush’s wars and Bush’s economic meltdown. Did I say Obama would raise taxes? Yes, he will raise taxes on the top 2.5% of income tax filers.
But McCain has pledged, in defiance of every known fact, that he will balance the budget in his first term.
October 1st, 2008 at 10:50 am
I’d like to propose a program where Larry makes glasses for all the Libs at 1U for free.
Richard, you claim that
Yet, the article you linked to says:
My goodness.
Reading really is fundamental.
October 1st, 2008 at 10:58 am
Senator McCain has pledged to balance the federal budget by 2013.
Are you denying this fact?
October 1st, 2008 at 11:07 am
Well. That would be a different link, wouldn’t it?
October 1st, 2008 at 11:11 am
Are you denying that McCain pledged to balance the budget in his first term as President?