Cost of repealing Alternative Minimum Tax: $1.2 trillion over a decade

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

http://www.khou.com/news/state/stories/khou050809_mh_Bush.58e36d90.html

CRAWFORD, Texas — President Bush, upbeat about reports showing steady economic growth, is mapping out a fall agenda that includes reviving the debate over Social Security and pushing to overhaul the nation's tax code.

Bush and his economic advisers have good news to discuss Tuesday at the president's Texas ranch, including last Friday's report that the economy created 207,000 jobs in July - the best showing in three months. That followed reports that the economy expanded at a solid 3.4 percent rate in the April-June quarter. Public opinion regarding Bush's handling of the economy is not as positive. An Associated Press-Ipsos poll conducted earlier this month showed his economic approval rating at 41 percent - his lowest rating yet on that poll.

Snow said the administration also will be pushing forward to overhaul the U.S. tax code after a presidential panel issues recommendations in late September.

The President's Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform said last month that that the alternative minimum tax, designed to hit affluent tax dodgers but now hovering over the middle class, should be abolished. The consensus to repeal the tax, however, means the panel must replace the $1.2 trillion that the Treasury Department expected to collect through that tax over the coming decade.

[krkaufman]

1. Sweet! Let's DO IT...!!