Tag: Rich

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Barack Obama Politics tax cuts

A Rich Man Ask President Obama – Would You Please Raise My Taxes?

In a LinkedIn Q & A, President Obama was asked a question by someone the Republicans have been trying their hardest to protect – a rich guy. The man asking the question told the President that he was unemployed, not because he forced to, but because he chose to be. He then asked;

“Would you please raise my taxes?” He continued: “I would like very much to have the country to continue to invest in things like Pell Grants, infrastructure, and job training programs that made it possible for me to get to where I am.”

We can safely predict that the regular talking GOP talking points to this man will be, “just write a check!” It’s the same talking point they’ve made to Warren Buffett and many other responsible rich folks who want to pay their fair share.

Republicans have taken a pledge not to raise taxes on the rich and are now fighting the President’s attempt to add revenue to the economy by asking the rich to pay the same tax rate as middle class Americans.

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Medicare Mitch McConnell paying taxes Politics Republican

Remember When McConnell Said The Rich Should Pay Their Taxes?

It was not that long ago, but when you look at what he said then and compare it with what he’s saying now in Washington, Mitch McConnell’s statement sounds like it came from a different dimension.

The year was 1990, and Mitch McConnell – the present Senate Republican Minority Leader – was in his campaign mode when he made a political ad referring to taxes, saying, ” Unlike some folks around here, I think everyone should pay their fair share, including the rich.” But McConnell didn’t stop there. He went on and took a position on Medicare that, when taken in conjunction with his taxing-the-rich statement, it prompted the Associated Press to say that he sounded like a “populist Democrat.” He called for the protection of Medicaid recipients.

Here is the transcript of Mitch McConnell’s full ad.

I’m sure you’ve been watching this mess in Washington.

I’d like you to know how I feel about it.

I haven’t voted for one of these lousy budget packages for years and I won’t vote for this one.

It would raise taxes on the wrong people.

Unlike some folks around here I think everyone should pay their fair share. Including the rich.

We need to protect our seniors from Medicare cuts too.

I don’t care if the President or Congressional leaders twist my arm. I won’t support any deal that isn’t a fair deal for the working families of Kentucky.

Those were the days when Democrats and Republicans were afraid to make their true motives known, and although they may have felt differently, putting the people first was always  the politically correct thing to do.

Today however, McConnell and his band of Congressional Republicans have made a pledge to Grover Norquist to never raise taxes on the rich, and they are in the midst of instituting some of the biggest spending cuts in our nation’s history. And yes, McConnell now wants to cut Medicare into non-existence.

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Politics

Report – It’s Harder For The Rich To Care For The Poor

As if we didn’t already know this. Various reports are now suggesting that rich people don’t feel compassion or empathy to the poor or less fortunate, the way other people do.

Psychologist and social scientist Dacher Keltner says the rich really are different, and not in a good way: Their life experience makes them less empathetic, less altruistic, and generally more selfish.

In fact, he says, the philosophical battle over economics, taxes, debt ceilings and defaults that are now roiling the stock market is partly rooted in an upper class “ideology of self-interest.”

“We have now done 12 separate studies measuring empathy in every way imaginable, social behavior in every way, and some work on compassion and it’s the same story,” he said. “Lower class people just show more empathy, more prosocial behavior, more compassion, no matter how you look at it.”

The report continues;

Unlike the rich, lower class people have to depend on others for survival, Keltner argued. So they learn “prosocial behaviors.” They read people better, empathize more with others, and they give more to those in need.

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