Sanders in WSJ: "Why Americans Are So Angry"

[Armstead]

http://sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=23d554d6-dd0c-41a5-8b80-a95eb72be82a

Source: Wall Street Journal

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By Senator Bernie Sanders

July 28, 2011

Excerpt:

The rich are getting richer. Their effective tax rate, in recent years, has been reduced to the lowest in modern history. Nurses, teachers and firemen actually pay a higher tax rate than some billionaires. It's no wonder the American people are angry.

Many corporations, including General Electric and Exxon-Mobil, have made billions in profits while using loopholes to avoid paying any federal income taxes. We lose $100 billion every year in federal revenue from companies and individuals who stash their wealth in tax havens off-shore like the Cayman Islands and Bermuda. The sum of all the revenue collected by the Treasury today totals just 14.8% of our gross domestic product, the lowest in about 50 years.

In the midst of this, Republicans in Congress have been fanatically determined to protect the interests of the wealthy and large multinational corporations so that they do not contribute a single penny toward deficit reduction. If the Republicans have their way, the entire burden of deficit reduction will be placed on the elderly, the sick, children and working families. In the midst of a horrendous recession that is already causing severe pain for average Americans, this approach is morally grotesque. It's also bad economic policy.

President Obama and the Democrats have been extremely weak in opposing these right-wing extremist proposals. Although the United States now has the most unequal distribution of wealth and income of any major industrialized country, Democrats have not succeeded in getting any new revenue from those at the top of the economic ladder to reduce the deficit. Instead, they've handed the wealthy even more tax breaks. In December, the House and the Senate extended President George W. Bush's tax cuts for the rich and lowered estate tax rates for the wealthiest Americans. In April, to avoid the Republican effort to shut down the government, they allowed $38.5 billion in cuts to vitally important programs for working-class and middle-class Americans.....

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[tularetom]

1. THAT was in the Wall St Journal?

Murdoch must really be scared shitless that the DOJ is going to charge him.

[Faryn Balyncd]

3. It sounds like the pre-Murdock Journal.

Like the one that published Jim Webb's "Class Struggle" in 2006

http://emergent79.wordpress.com/sen-elect-jim-webbs-wall-street-j-op-ed-class-struggle/



(The one that can apparently be no longer found at an active link at the current "Journal":
Here's the link that at one time got you to the article:
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110009246

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x247114 )

[unblock]

13. they let lefties on the "op" side. sometimes. you'll never see them on the "ed" side, though.

[sarcasmo]

2. Bernie for President.

[Lugnut]

4. K&R n/t

[white_wolf]

5. Bernie speaks for me and the vast majority of Americans.

[swilton]

6. Kickety Rickety

[SammyWinstonJack]

7. K&R

:mad:

[WI_DEM]

8. He's absolutely right. This country has its priorities wrong--including President Obama

[Chimichurri]

9. Bernie is a Hero

[hifiguy]

10. Kick for Bernie!

:kick:

[chill_wind]

11. K & R.

HuffPo finally got around to it, too.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-bernie-sanders/why-americans-are-so-angr_b_913393.html

[glinda]

12. ok. I give. Run Bernie.

[treestar]

14. How are Democrats supposed to succeed at getting new revenue?

With this Congress. As for the voters, they can stuff their anger, they expressed it in 2010 and they can take what they voted for. They expect taxes to be raised on the rich? Then why did they give the House to the Republicans?