Tax Problems For Daschle, Geithner and Other Obama Nominees Show Need for Reform

Taxes

What do you expect from democraps... honesty?... LOL!!!!!!!!!

tax reform

While tax reform is certainly necessary (I myself support Fair Tax) you make a serious error in logic in drawing that conclusion in this fashion. Dishonesty has nothing to do with the issue of tax reform. These people knew about their tax liability. The facts support that. They chose not to act with integrity. That is not the fault of the tax code. Articles like yours simply distract people from the moral issue. Tax reform has nothing to do with some individuals immoral behaviors.

Tax Code♦

First of all, Hillbilly, GWB isn't Pres anymore...get over it, will ya!

On the Tax Code. I saw an unabridged copy in an attorneys office a few years ago. It was HUNDREDS of volumes long. He commented that absolutely NO ONE could know the US tax code, and NO ONE could be sure they complied. He called it the biggest waste of human resources and effort in world history.

He was on to something. But you cannot have a Congress meet every year for 120 years doing nothing but writing new laws every day and not expect the legal nightmare we have now.

Is it time (OMG, I can't even believe I am thinking this) to throw out our present government and start over with a clean slate? Maybe make it unconstitutional for lawyers to run for office? Make EVERY law expire in 5 years if not renewed? Set a FLAT TAX for everybody?

Tax Code

We are way overdue to reform the tax code in a way that would ensure that anyone would be capable of understanding it and properly filing. Isn't it time for the grown-ups to take over Washington and end this partisan nonsense of the last sixteen years ?

WE NEED A FLAT TAX !!!!!

This is easy we need a FLAT TAX !!!!

time for the Fair Tax

Yes, our tax system is obscenely complex. This complexity obvioously hinders compliance. How many other people who aren't being appointed or elected to a high office unintentionally have not paid all of their taxes (without mentioning the ones who do so deliberately)? A flat tax won't fix it, because the government will still have to have complicated rules on what is income and what is not. The only way to truly simplify our tax code is to abolish the income tax, payroll taxes, and the IRS, and change to the consumption tax that is fully detailed at Fairtax.org.

Think about this:

We penalize with a tax the activities that we want to encourage--work, income, job creation, savings, and investment. Corporations don't pay taxes, they pass them on to people. If businesses were free of the tax burdens and tax compliance burdens that they have now,they could lower prices, and banks could lower interest rates, and our products would be more competitive overseas, whereas imports would get the consumption tax. Our economy would take off, and this economic crisis would end.

Tax Reform-Eliminate the tax code and the IRS

Better yet, why not adopt the FairTax?

It would replace income tax, Medicare tax, Social Security tax and corporate tax with a simple consumption tax. Everyone who purchases goods would get a monthly rebate check to cover such taxes paid on basic life necessities such as food, clothing and shelter.

The FairTax would end manipulation of our lives through the provisions in the present income tax code. It would eliminate the IRS and endless hours spent by taxpayers to determine how much taxes they should pay each year. Imbedded taxes on everything we buy would go away in the process (Corporations don't pay taxes, consumers of their goods pay them). This type of taxation would make our businesses truly competitive in the world marketplace. Adoption of the FairTax would constitute unsurpassed economic stimulus!

Bunk

The tax rules these guys violated are not arcane; they are basic. I'm not even an accountant or a finance professional yet I was aware of them. Yet these two are supposed pros -- smarter than the rest of us to begin with -- and who also hire real pros to give them more specialized advise. Honest mistakes? Give me a break! In all liklihood, they thought they could get away with it, started to 'spin' their way out of it, and were forced to pay up -- but only so far; let's not conflate this with ethical behavior; these two are applying the letter of the law, here, not ethical compliance!

We rightly skewer business people for playing fast and loose. We should do the same to political people -- of BOTH parties.

Simplify the tax code, probably. But use that as 'cover' for blatant non-compliance? Bunk!

Cast the first stone?

If past mistakes were the rule--former drinker, drugger, wife cheater GWB could never have been president.

Yet he took advice from a higher power.

And was re-appointed for a 2nd term.

Even though he never admitted a mistake, apparently he was forgiven anyway.

If every member of Congress had his/her past reviewed in careful detail, how many would be free of mistakes or blame for wrong doing by accident or deliberately?

For that matter, how many citizens would pass the same test?

Come on

You really believe this was an honest mistake? These guys are lawyers who exploit loopholes. Do you really think that they dont pay people to do this for them? Ask yourself if this were joe plumber would it take a year or two for the government to be him like stink on you know what? It should be against the law for a lawyer to serve as a representative, senator or president in this country. Wait a second, I seem to remember that at one time in the history of this Republic that was an amendment that was proposed. Here is an idea, let's revive it again!