And with most Math problems there are two sides to every equation.
There's a spending/investing side, and there's a revenue/earnings side.
Want to get rid of the National Debt -- then get rid of the moochers and loafers who are 'gaming the system" ... (usually with a small army of accountants and corporate lawyers, who know all the tricks.)
The Balancing Act
[...]
If enacted, the Balancing Act would result in more than $3.3 trillion in total deficit reduction since 2010, and would do so in a fair, balanced approach that protects working families who continue to work harder and harder for less and less.
[...]
Replace Sequester with Revenue:
• 28 Percent Limitation on Certain Deductions and Exclusions ($482B)
• Close Carried Interest Loophole ($17B)
• Close Loopholes for Jets and Yachts ($4B)
• Close International Tax System Loopholes ($161B)
• End Fossil Fuel Subsidies ($94B)
• Close Exclusion of Foreign-Earned Income Loophole ($71B)
• Close Corporate Deductions for Stock Options Loophole ($25B)
• Close Estate Tax Loopholes ($23B)
• Close S Corporation Loophole ($13B)
• Reduce Corporate Meal and Entertainment Deduction to 25% ($70B)
[...]
--
Congressional Progressive Caucus
It's a simple Math problem -- Not a deficit problem.
The National Debt can BE balanced -- and without going after the "earned benefits" of American seniors, too.
We simply have to go after loopholes and give-aways that benefit those 'economic gamers' -- who really don't need the "government hand-outs."
• Repeal of Sequester – Sec. 101
[...]
• Close Carried Interest Loophole ($17 billion) – Sec. 201
Ensures that carried interest income from service partnerships is taxed as ordinary income. Hedge fund executives and other investment managers can currently count their share of the firms’ profits as an investment in the partnership rather than as a fee for service. This allows some of the highest-income Americans to pay much lower tax rates (15% in 2012 and 23% in 2013) than they would pay if their fee was correctly taxed as ordinary income (up to 39%), even though the funds they manage are not their own and managing the money is their job.
[...]
• Close International Tax System Loopholes ($161 billion) – Secs. 401-405
Closes corporate tax loopholes and cracks down on offshore tax abuses that encourage corporations to move jobs offshore. Offshore corporations that are managed from the United States would no longer be able to claim foreign status and dodge taxes on their non-U.S. income. In addition, the bill eliminates tax incentives for moving U.S. jobs offshore and transferring intellectual property offshore. The bill gives the Treasury Department stronger authority to take tough new actions to combat tax haven banks and jurisdictions that help U.S. clients evade taxes. (includes bill text from Sen. Levin and Rep. Neal)
• End Fossil Fuel Subsidies ($94 billion) – Secs. 301-311
Repeals tax breaks, financial assistance, exploration and development expensing, preferential tax treatment of royalties, and domestic manufacturing deductions, for oil, natural gas, and coal producers. Despite the fossil fuel industries being among the most profitable on earth, the U.S. government gives them tens of billions of dollars in subsidies through the tax code. The five largest U.S. oil companies earned about $1 trillion in profits over the past decade, yet in recent years, companies like Exxon Mobil and Chevron paid zero federal income taxes. These subsidies distort markets and are detrimental to creating a clean energy economy, reducing our reliance on oil, and cutting carbon pollution.
[...]
While were at it -- making the 'millionaire gamers' give back a tiny amount to the economic system that has given them so much, has made them wealthy --
We should DEMAND that these Wall Street gamers
give back a mere 3 cent on each $100 bet.
They CAN afford it.
If they can't afford that -- then they should quit pretending they are "productive, essential contributors to American society" ...
Financial Transactions Tax Introduced Again -- Can It Pass This Time?
by George Zornick, TheNation.com -- Feb 28, 2013
[...] Senators Tom Harkin and Sheldon Whitehouse, along with Representative Peter DeFazio, announced the latest version of a tax on Wall Street trading: it would place a small tax of three basis points (that is, three pennies for every hundred dollars) on most non-consumer trades. Senator Bernie Sanders is also a co-sponsor of the legislation, as are nineteen members of the House.
If enacted, the tax would generate $352 billion in revenue over the next ten years, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation. It would apply to traded stocks and bonds, derivative contracts, options, puts, forward contracts, swaps and other complex Wall Street instruments. It would not cover the initial issuance of any stocks or bonds, nor covers or loans in the form of stock.
Three pennies per one hundred dollars would not be noticeable to most retail operations and average Americans -- someone with a 401(k) balance of $60,000 (the median in the United States) would pay $18 per year in financial transactions taxes under this bill, and it contains a tax credit to cover the cost of the tax for contributions to tax-benefitted pension, health and education plans.
This transactions tax would most notably impact high-frequency traders -- and this is a feature, not a bug. High-speed trading presents a real threat to the economic system and would theoretically be slowed if the bill is passed. DeFazio said the measure would “bring more stability to the financial markets, favoring long-term value investors -- those who want to build an economy.”
[...]
If they want to be part of American Society, then they should be willing
to pay 'their 3 Cents.'
If not, then someone should revoke their gambling permits. Someone like the SEC. (Someone like the IRS.)
In a Society there are rules. And unless the SEC is willing to enforce the rules of road, then how in the world will anything ever change for the better?
If 'bad economic behavior' is never penalized, where is the incentive for it to ever stop? ... For the casino gamers to find something a bit more "constructive" to invest in.