50% of American workers do not pay taxes!

[wurzel]

That is the mantra of the Repukes. The Dems only response to this is to blab about paying payroll taxes. True, but irrelevant! What the Repukes are openly admitting is that under this capitalist system the income of half the working population in the USA is now too low to be taxed! And the Dems should be rubbing these Corporate Whore's noses in that disgraceful fact!

[Mimosa]

1. Reframing in the right words is a good idea. n/t

[FreakinDJ]

2. and Corps pay a Lower Tax rate then Teachers

so what

[yurbud]

good idea

[Zax2me]

3. It's closer to 47%.

Not 50.

[dems_rightnow]

22. Oh, that's very different.

Thanks for the update.

[demosincebirth]

4. I guess the republicans forgot. Don't make enough you don't pay taxes. Make too much you don't

pay taxes.

[aquart]

5. "You mean you aren't paying them enough to live on?"

"Do you have no decency or conscience? How many Americans could live good, tax-paying lives if every CEO was paid ten million dollars less?"

[Brigid]

29. Perfect response.

I will be using that. :)

[n2doc]

6. I guess sales, property, gas, payroll, etc., taxes aren't "taxes" n/t

[Cant trust em]

15. Thank you!

Man, I would love to not be playing on the republicans playing field sometimes. When we fuck up our talking points we lose.

[Buns_of_Fire]

27. No "killer instinct." No willingness to throw their talking points right back in their teeth on the

talking-head shows. (Although Alan Grayson was willing to do this, but look where it got him...)

[Angry Dragon]

7. At least 243 congress people are millionaires

Their pay puts them in the top 5% of income households
They make more than 95% of American households

as of 2009 50% of American households make less than $60,000/yr

40% make less than $45,000/yr

Congress and Washington, DC are out of touch with the American people
how can you expect them to understand what it takes to live in this country

[Tennessee Gal]

8. the income of half the working population in the USA is now too low to be taxed

Kinda makes you sick. But so true.

[Curmudgeoness]

9. I don't know who these 50% of workers are, or how they

pull off paying no taxes. I have, for much of my life, been in the low wage brackets, and I have never had a year where I paid no taxes. Not even when I first bought a house and had all the mortgage interest to deduct, and that was before all the limits on what percent of your deductions you could deduct.

I guess I need an accountant. Or 10 kids. I don't know how that many workers do it.

[RebelOne]

13. I have been working since I was 19 and have paid

a whole lot into taxes. For a few years, I always got a tax refund. But after that when I filed, I always had to pay. As of last year I have been retired (not out of choice, as I was laid off) and was totally shocked that I finally got a refund, which amounted to $962. I thought I would have to pay. Fortunately, I did not have to pay taxes on my social security and I have been collecting unemployment, which I had taxes taken out of the check. So, finally after many years, I finally came out ahead.

[Curmudgeoness]

18. But not having to pay additional tax with the return is not the same

as paying "no tax". Every time you get a paycheck, income tax is deducted. So when you do the tax return, you may or may not have had enough taxes paid in to cover what you owe.

If, indeed, you paid "no tax", you would get every penny that they deducted from every paycheck you received. Whether you have a refund of some of that or owe additional tax is not the same.

EDIT: And I am very glad that you did not have to send them more money that what was paid from your unemployment check this year.

:toast:

[WillyT]

10. Exactly !!! - K & R !!!

:kick:

[proud2BlibKansan]

11. That is an excellent point

[lifesbeautifulmagic]

12. man, these repubs just make me sick

so a ceo makes over 400% of an average worker. Top executives make 200,000 to 500,000 annually.

Jobs paying middle class wages of around 35,000 to 100,000 seem to be disappearing, or are having their wage range "re-structured", lower, of course.

Most new jobs pay under $13.00 an hour. Most service sector jobs, now the largest classification of jobs, pay under $25,000 annually.

I know a hell of a lot of people who now work 2 low paying part time jobs just to get by. Judging from the amount of co-workers I have who do this, it is the new normal.

There is rampart unemployment in minority communities, and all the repubs can do is pass laws restricting abortion rights. They could give a shit about urban communities.

Food banks use and homelessness is off the charts. When I would hear my left friends talk about how evil the repubs are, I would think it was hysteria, and hyperbole. But now, I am beginning to realize, repubs (and the corporations who fund them) are truly, truly evil motherfuckers. pardon for swearing.

[Cant trust em]

14. All Americans pay tax.

It might be sales, property, utilities and use taxes. They might not all be paying federal income taxes, but they pay taxes.

Please get the story straight.

[LeftyMom]

28. Exactly. And lower income people pay a higher percentage of their income in taxes

because many of those taxes are regressive.

[JHB]

16. Don't agree. It's part of how they get people running in the direction they want.

The whole point of it is to feed the impression that there is some huge army of layabouts who live on mooched hand-outs from the government.
They pulled this same tactic in the 80's about welfare: they'd quote how large a percentage of the federal budget went to "entitlements", implying it all went to food stamps, housing projects, welfare payments, etc., and conveniently not mention that most of the number was actually Social Security and Medicare.
Their spin tanks would put out reports purporting to show how much money was wasted on antipoverty programs, but they'd include things like home mortgage tax deductions, which mostly benefitted the middle class.

I understand wanting to throw it back in their faces ("your argument doesn't make sense even on your own terms"), but the point to drive home over and over again is that they're lying, they lie constantly about this, and that anything they say is worthless beccause you can't take their word for ANYTHING.

[jmowreader]

17. The cause-and-effect thing enters here

On August 13 we will either be celebrating or mourning Ronald Reagan's signing of the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981, which is better known as the Kemp-Roth Tax Cut.

Since that time, the Republicans have proposed tax cuts as the solution to everything including foot fungus. That's all well and good--yes, if you cut my taxes six dollars a pay period I can afford to buy a tube of Lotrimin, but if we'd have left taxes the hell alone my boss would pay me six dollars more a month to lower HIS taxes and I'd be able to buy the Lotrimin anyway--but consider that if you cut taxes repeatedly, eventually you run into a situation where half the country has no income tax liability.

In other words, a Republican complaining about half the country not paying taxes is about as credible as a Republican who threw a hammer through the window complaining about the couch getting rained on.

[LiberalFighter]

19. Very important key points.

Everyone has income that is NOT TAXED.

Rich people have more income that is NOT TAXED than low or middle income folks.

[Tennessee Gal]

20. Excellent!

That is the response that should be used!

[SoutherDem]

21. Too Many Americans Believe This Republican BS

I know many people who feel "50% of Americans do not pay taxes" means they pay 0 taxes at all, they really believe this! They don't understand that is ONLY income tax, and that the only reason is they don't make enough to owe any income tax. They over look how there are corporations who make billions, yet not just pay 0 taxes they get money from the U.S. Government.

I hear some of the same people say we should have a flat tax, one tax rate for all no matter how much or little you make. They choose different %'s but it is usually about 5% less than they currently pay, most are taxed at 25% so they suggest 20%, giving them selves a 5% cut. I then explain how to take 20% of the income from someone making only $10,000 would be left with only $8,000 and then I ask them how far that would go? Especially considering there would still be payroll taxes, sales taxes, and state taxes. I then remind them most flat tax plans I have heard of removes most if not all deductions. Since most are marred with kids, have a house and have one or two other deductions they realize their tax bill would actually go up. They of course want to keep the deductions and go to the flat tax, I then explain that person who is making only $10,000 if they are single possibly would pay more taxes than they do, and I am really not sure if they care!

Another argument I hear is a consumption tax, or National Sales Tax. They seem to feel that would be fair. I then explain that would mean a poor person would pay taxes on ALL of their income because be cause it is all needed for survival, how they would pay on about 80%-90%, yet millionaires and billionaires would have only a fraction of their income no matter how extravagant lifestyle they live.

For what it is worth, YES, our tax system is broken! But the problem is we are taxing the poor too much and the rich and corporations much too little.

[Obamanaut]

23. Your subject line would be more accurate if you limit it to 'federal income tax'

Anyone who buys anything retail pays sales tax. There are taxes/fees for drivers licenses. Many people pay property tax. Most people pay into social security as a tax. There are taxes involved in gasoline purchases.

But many, many do not have a federal income tax burden at all. Some even get a 'refund' check despite paying no income tax, through the Earned Income Tax Credit.

[OHdem10]

24. They do not earn enough to be charged taxes.

[farmbo]

25. 100% of American workers pay taxes...

Payroll taxes (SS, FICA, FUTA, etc) and federal, state and (usually) municipal income taxes come out of every worker's paychecks. Workers also pay the lion's share of state sales taxes, local real estate taxes, and gasoline taxes.

Some percentage of the workers (maybe between 30-45%) get a refund of some/all of their FEDERAL INCOME TAXES. Payroll taxes are never refunded.

So avoid the GOP frame please... all US workers pay taxes!

[Bluerthanblue]

26. must be the top 50% cause everyone I know

does. And those who make too little to pay income tax, still pay taxes-

:shrug:

[Festivito]

30. That's sadly down from what should be 66% paying no taxes.

People should live to 90 years, work 30 years, grow up and learn for 20 years, then beyond work retire for nearly 40 years.

That's 30/90, or 33% workers that should pay taxes.

50% means that something is wrong.

[OneGrassRoot]

31. There are excellent points here. If they could be summarized...

in a sentence or two, we'd have something good to run with!

Because progressives rarely see things as black or white, and and because we understand there are many aspects and facts related to issues, it's nearly impossible for progressives to come up with effective soundbites that capture the points we're trying to make succinctly.

I can't do it either, but maybe someone else can.

:hi:

:thumbsup: