Obama's stance on Social Security and tax hikes......?

Question

It was former President Bill Clinton who several years ago set out the limited options for Social Security reform: cut benefits, invest privately, or raise taxes. During the last Democratic candidate debate, his wife refused to put any of those options on the "proverbial table." The other Democratic contenders weren't as hesitant. Five candidates, including John Edwards and Barack Obama, supported lifting the cap on payroll taxes to finance the system.

Currently, only the first $97,500 of annual income is subject to the payroll tax. Edwards in particular was adamant about taxing earners who make over $200,000 a year. But while soaking the rich may be a politically popular approach, the reality is that this enormous tax hike would seriously damage the U.S. economy while doing very little to save Social Security.

Eliminating the cap on payroll taxes would be, by far, the biggest tax hike in U.S. history: more than $1.3 trillion in new taxes over the first 10 years alone. As bad as that would be in the aggregate, it would be even worse for individual workers. A worker earning $103,000 per year would pay $1,240 more in taxes each year.

Moreover, raising the tax cap would not just impact the super rich, as is often argued, but would fall most heavily on the upper middle class. Some 9.2 million Americans would see their taxes increased. Roughly three quarters are managers or other professionals such as doctors, lawyers, and engineers. 16 percent work in sales or office occupations, while the remainder includes teachers, nurses, truck drivers, farmers, and police officers. Small businesses would be particularly hammered: about one-third of the workers affected by raising the cap would be small business owners.

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

Remove the cap, take care of the social security problem?  Not likely until they put the funds in a trust solely for Social Security.  All collections now go into the general fund and get spent
Raise taxes on the rich (who generate job growth) and you quell job growth, income, and taxes decline.  Spiralling out of control.  Dem's don't get it.  Their answer is always to "tax the rich", give to the poor, the poor will then vote for me and I will retain my lofty perky position.
God, the questions a rant and you can't help but make the answer one also!!!

iatarola · Answer

as quickly as Obama levy a a strategies better tax value on the best a million-3% of the tax bracket, Social secure practices would be solvent. the reason social secure practices seems to be working out is because of the fact in the final 7 years, Bush had the middle classification footing the finished bill (actually). Obama will opposite that and have the those in the best income bracket footing a a strategies better share whilst the middle classification, a miles less share - that's optimal. It the same shape bill Clinton used and u.s. gain a surplus and of undertaking to pay down the national debt until Bush squandered it. Obama 08!!

Anonymous · Answer

I've never heard of a teacher making more than $97,500 a year.  Most farmers are perpetually in debt.  And few police officers make that much.  I'm sure some doctors do though.  

But if you insist upon not raising taxes, then I propose making up the money through massive cuts in military spending.  $500 billion a year is more than we need for defense, I think $100 billion a year is plenty.  There we go, problem solved. No tax hikes.

Edit: why wouldn't he be?  It's as you said, a politically popular position to take. Democratic views on the economy and Republican views on the economy differ to some extent.  Democrats don't feel that taxes have to be as low as Republicans claim in order to have a healthy economy. I'm saying that if you don't want to raise taxes, but still want to save social security, then cuts have to be made.  I think the military budget would be the most logical place, but it would be politically unpopular to cut it, just as it would be politically unpopular to do nothing about social security.  They have to do something, something that people will support and we know they don't want it privatized, they'll only except small spending cuts, they don't want a decrease in benefits, so they go with their last viable option: raise taxes.

Edit again, to below:  The average teacher makes $47,602/yr. according to the American federation of teachers or just over $52,000 according to the BLS.  The average police officer makes $48,410 according to the BLS.  The average corrections officer makes under $40,000 a year according to the BLS.  Gee, I'll take my hard evidence over your anecdotal evidence anyday.

Ken B · Answer

I don't know where you got your formula but the difference between $97.5K and $103K is not $1240. SS tax is 7.5%. The diff in the two is $412.50. That being said, I have no doubt that the dems will tax us to death. They always have.

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Obama's stance on Social Security and tax hikes......?

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