President Obama used the idea of “economic
patriotism” to push forward his budget, in which he closed one of the
tax loopholes that lets companies avoid paying taxes by Romneying
themselves to another country just to avoid paying taxes here. That does
seem pretty unpatriotic, lazy, and entitled especially since said
companies use the resources that U.S. taxpayers fund. It is currently
legal to do this, if “you” are a certain kind of big money company.
The President also pushed for business tax reform that would create incentives for companies to create jobs here.
Watch here:
Transcript from the White House:
Hi, everybody. Our businesses have now added
nearly 10 million new jobs over the past 52 months. The unemployment
rate is at its lowest point since September 2008 – the fastest one-year
drop in nearly 30 years. 401(k)s are growing, fewer homes are
underwater, and for the first time in more than a decade, business
leaders around the world have declared that the world’s number one place
to invest isn’t China; it’s the United States of America – and our lead
is growing.
None of this is an accident. It’s thanks to the
resilience and resolve of the American people that our country has
recovered faster and come farther than almost any other advanced nation
on Earth.
But there’s another trend that threatens to
undermine the progress you’ve helped make. Even as corporate profits
are as high as ever, a small but growing group of big corporations are
fleeing the country to get out of paying taxes. They’re keeping most of
their business inside the United States, but they’re basically
renouncing their citizenship and declaring that they’re based somewhere
else, just to avoid paying their fair share.
I want to be clear: this is only a few big
corporations so far. The vast majority of American businesses pay their
taxes right here in the United States. But when some companies
cherrypick their taxes, it damages the country’s finances. It adds to
the deficit. It makes it harder to invest in the things that will keep
America strong, and it sticks you with the tab for what they stash
offshore. Right now, a loophole in our tax laws makes this totally
legal – and I think that’s totally wrong. You don’t get to pick which
rules you play by, or which tax rate you pay, and neither should these
companies.
The best way to level the playing field is through
tax reform that lowers the corporate tax rate, closes wasteful
loopholes, and simplifies the tax code for everybody. But stopping
companies from renouncing their citizenship just to get out of paying
their fair share of taxes is something that cannot wait. That’s why, in
my budget earlier this year, I proposed closing this unpatriotic tax
loophole for good. Democrats in Congress have advanced proposals that
would do the same thing. A couple Republicans have indicated they want
to address this too, and I hope more join us.
Rather than double-down on the top-down economics
that let a fortunate few play by their own rules, let’s embrace an
economic patriotism that says we rise or fall together, as one nation,
and as one people. Let’s reward the hard work of ordinary Americans who
play by the rules. Together, we can build up our middle class, hand
down something better to our kids, and restore the American Dream for
all who work for it and study for it and strive for it.
Thanks, and have a great weekend.
It’s true that companies who know the right people
and have enough money can legally pick and choose if they want to pay
taxes here even if they actually do business here. Do not try this if
you are a person. Do see the Supreme Court about the difference, or lack
thereof.
Democrats have proposed closing the tax loophole,
but naturally, there is no time for piddling matters of legislation,
finance, economics, tax reform, or patriotism when there are Obama witch
hunts to be manufactured out of nothing. And now that the taxpayers are
paying for Speaker John Boehner and the House repugican cabal to sue the President
while they take even more days off, it would be foolish to expect anything from this Congress.
Oh, wait. I stand corrected. repugicans did make time for matters of finance and tax reform. They have been trying
to add $310 billion (some say closer to a trillion all told) to the
deficit in unpaid for, permanent tax credits for businesses. These
tax credits were supposed to be temporary to “stimulate” the economy
(trickle down already!) but since they didn’t work according to repugicans, who claim the Obama economy is awful, repugicans figured
why not devastate the deficit permanently just in case it might start
working (do not apply this logic to “stimulating” the economy with long
term unemployment benefits, because this actually works, so naturally it
won’t be done). So much for “it must be offset” as an excuse for why repugicans won’t pass legislation. “It must be offset UNLESS it
benefits big business.”
It has become quite clear that this Congress will do
absolutely nothing except troll President Obama on your dime when they
aren’t robbing you blind to make things cushier for their corporate
masters, unless and until they are replaced with actual lawmakers who
take pride in a days work. We need some economic patriotism, but we also
need a little legislative patriotism.
During
World War II, the German military faced a threat worse than the Allies:
typhus. The disease was killing soldiers and weakening the German
forces on the Eastern front as they faced the Soviet Army. They
scrambled to develop a typhus vaccine in hurry. Joachim Mrugowsky, head
of the SS Hygiene Institute, set up a research lab at Buchenwald
concentration camp, thinking it would be safe from Allied bombing.
