GE's CEO to America - "Thanks for the Tax Breaks - Suckers"

[FreakinDJ]

I just heard that on CNN when they were reading off from the "Feed Back" file, and it really summed up the situation so well as I was rolling on the floor I was laughing so hard. It was the other comments that disturbed me the most

General Electric Co.’s health care unit, the world’s biggest maker of medical imaging machines, is moving the headquarters of its 115-year-old X-ray business to Beijing.
http://articles.boston.com/2011-07-26/business/29817324_1_ge-healthcare-x-ray-business-china-last-year

other comments attributed Tariffs and cheap labor for the move. Truth is GE is moving to China to take advantage of even more Tax Breaks.

[ShockediSay]

1. And this guy is supposed to help U.S. create jobs! n/t

[FreakinDJ]

2. point is - the jobs will continue to leave until the Corp Tax Code is changed

[Crazy Dave]

5. Tax code my ass!

GE did not pay any corporate tax and got a huge tax credit. Try again.

[FreakinDJ]

9. Corp Tax Code is what makes Outsoursing Profitable

not any 1 single provision but a multitude of them that makes outsourcing very profitable

[Armstead]

25. Cheap labor, no environmental regulation, skewed trade policy -- that's what makes it so profitable

[FreakinDJ]

26. only part of the equation - a small part

Forest Laboratories Inc., maker of the antidepressant Lexapro, does as well, Bloomberg News reported in May. The New York-based drug manufacturer claims that most of its profits are earned overseas even though its sales are almost entirely in the U.S. Forest later disclosed that its transfer pricing was being audited by the IRS.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-21/google-2-4-rate-shows-how-60-billion-u-s-revenue-lost-to-tax-loopholes.html

An estimated 60% of all international trade happens within, rather than between, Multinational Corporations. Global Financial Integrity in Washington estimates an amount of several $100 Billion dollars of Taxes are lost annually.

As long as these Corps can paper shuffle profits around the globe they can not only avoid Taxes in the USA - they can also avoid the Taxes in China too

"For the Record" - I'm against competing unfairly with Chinese Labor just as much as anyone else - but to think that is all there is to the puzzle is failed logic

[Armstead]

29. The whole matrix of this is immoral and socially destructive

Why should corpirations, in their quest to suck money out of the econony, be allowed to also avoid paying their share of publuc responsibity, like the rest of us have to?

They are going to suck all of the air out of the room if they does have any accountability.

[Wilms]

3. .

[Crazy Dave]

4. I can't wait to hear the excuses from this administration and his enabelers...

...when they try to spin this. Let them tell us all why Obama made GE's CEO the head of his "Council on Jobs" and why they got the huge tax break that's going to fuck us out of jobs and retirement?

[Marr]

7. Well put. n/t

[FreakinDJ]

8. It is not 1 Tax Break - its the whole Corp Tax Code

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=114x88828

[Crazy Dave]

10. For anyone with intelligence

It's lower wages and non-existent safety and quality controls standards.

Seriously, they are moving the jobs overseas for cheap labor while keeping their corporate offices here for massive tax breaks and tax payer subsidies. Tell me how many corporations overseas exceed GE's record profits and are not headquartered here in the US because of tax codes?

When manufacturing jobs here all pay $8 an hour the jobs will return despite your weak and laughable "Tax code" argument.

[FreakinDJ]

14. China has no infrastructure and 35% total Corp Taxes

A flat 25% Corporate Tax WITH a 10% Capitol Gains tax added on top

http://www.pwccn.com/home/eng/prctax_corp_overview_taxation.html

Additionally to manufacture microchips in China. Intel has to build their own Power Plant, Water Treatment Plant, Housing, Roads to their Facility, Security, ect, every thing they would normally depend on to be provided by the American Government - and they have to maintain those facilities as well

Personally I am not sure that equation works as well as using Tax Haven Countries to shelter tons of cash

[Crazy Dave]

16. Again for anyone with intelligence....

How can 25% corporate taxes be better than ZERO, that's 0%? The numbers don't add up and you make me laugh even harder. You should work for the president. These corporations pay 1% or 0% and still get millions in tax refunds

Ten giant U.S. companies avoiding income taxes

1) Exxon Mobil made $19 billion in profits in 2009. Exxon not only paid no federal income taxes, it actually received a $156 million rebate from the IRS, according to its SEC filings.

2) Bank of America received a $1.9 billion tax refund from the IRS last year, although it made $4.4 billion in profits and received a bailout from the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department of nearly $1 trillion.

3) Over the past five years, while General Electric made $26 billion in profits in the United States, it received a $4.1 billion refund from the IRS.

4) Chevron received a $19 million refund from the IRS last year after it made $10 billion in profits in 2009.

5) Boeing, which received a $30 billion contract from the Pentagon to build 179 airborne tankers, got a $124 million refund from the IRS last year.

6) Valero Energy, the 25th largest company in America with $68 billion in sales last year received a $157 million tax refund check from the IRS and, over the past three years, it received a $134 million tax break from the oil and gas manufacturing tax deduction.

7) Goldman Sachs in 2008 only paid 1.1 percent of its income in taxes even though it earned a profit of $2.3 billion and received an almost $800 billion from the Federal Reserve and U.S. Treasury Department.

8) Citigroup last year made more than $4 billion in profits but paid no federal income taxes. It received a $2.5 trillion bailout from the Federal Reserve and U.S. Treasury.

9) ConocoPhillips, the fifth largest oil company in the United States, made $16 billion in profits from 2007 through 2009, but received $451 million in tax breaks through the oil and gas manufacturing deduction.

10) Over the past five years, Carnival Cruise Lines made more than $11 billion in profits, but its federal income tax rate during those years was just 1.1 percent.

http://blogs.suntimes.com/sweet/2011/03/ten_giant_us_companies_avoidin.html

[FreakinDJ]

18. Without attempting to insult each other - Explain Tax Haven Countries

If - the China Labor equation is all that these Corporations relied on to reap these massive profits then why would they be giving the Cayman Islands a cut of the money registering their Corporations or Subsidiaries of in the Cayman Islands. The Tax Rate might be low (2.1%) but it still isn't free

[FreakinDJ]

20. I knew you wouldn't reply - takes too much reading for you

1/2 of those companies you listed HAVE NO MANUFACTURING or $4 a day labor in China

WOW - Who could of Thunk it

[Crazy Dave]

27. I just had better things to do in my life outside of DU

What a right wing/tea party wet dream!

[banned from Kos]

21. GE got no tax break from Obama! Nada!

They escaped taxes using long-standing Net Operating Loss carry-overs and other bullshit.

[FreakinDJ]

24. Don't worry - he is more concerned with Bashing Obama then Pesky Facts

[Crazy Dave]

28. But he did make GE's CEO the leader of his "Jobs Council"

Just a coincidence? No, just pure and factual bullshit!

[Marr]

6. You know, if the US ever gets into an armed struggle with China, I wonder

what's going to happen to all these conglomerates who've put their operations into that country? I expect we'd see a sudden reemergence of their sense of "civic duty".

[BiggJawn]

11. Civic duty? Sure.

Just like Prescott Bush's sense of civic duty to Nazi Germany back in WWII before he got caught at it.

[Marr]

15. Yeah-- I mean "civic duty" like,

'I'll immediately bring my assets back to where they're safe, and please now send your children to defend the assets I can't actually haul back home'.

[BiggJawn]

23. Bingo.

"You peasants get over there and SAVE MY FACTORY!!"

[Bake]

12. I say we don't let them sell their damn machines here.

I'm sure Siemens would be glad to sell more of their machines in the U.S. market.

Bake

[SpiralHawk]

13. There's your Republicon Family Cesspool Values for you...

...A hand full of gimme, and a break for greener pastures...

Corporate Republicons dumping on America again...disgustipating...

[kiranon]

17. GE will regret this move after China makes the same equipment and

sells it for less thereby driving GE into the ground. China is a great market for Chinese owned companies and, in the long run (and sometimes the short run), they are all Chinese owned/controlled.

[FreakinDJ]

19. They tried but failed to do that with Intel

Intel was just smart enough to with hold just enough of the Technological Know How when China basically reneged on their agreements in 2004.

China was planning to take over the semiconductor market in 2005

As a result Intel and China made nice and Intel is back in there.

BTW: a good friend of mine is 1 of Intel's R&D engineers

[Armstead]

22. But, but,but their CEO wants to create American jobs....

President Obama told me so.

[sarcasmo]

30. CEO and Corporate GREED the American way.