MetaFilter posts tagged with taxes and politics

Stories of where US stimulus checks are going

ThePinkSuperhero — Sat, 31 May 2008 17:35:38 -0800

HowISpentMyStimulus.com In January, Congress approved $152 billion in economic stimulus checks for millions of American households, intended to boost the economy and avert a recession. Just how this money will be spent remains to be seen. We hope this website helps shed some light on where the stimulus money is going.

Economic Consequences

homunculus — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 00:35:28 -0800

The Economic Consequences of Mr. Bush. "The next president will have to deal with yet another crippling legacy of George W. Bush: the economy. A Nobel laureate, Joseph E. Stiglitz, sees a generation-long struggle to recoup." [Via Firedoglake.]

Infrastructure Report Card

homunculus — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 23:15:25 -0800

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) published their latest Infrastructure Report Card in 2005. America's infrastructure got a D. The ASCE estimate that it will cost $1.6 trillion over a five-year period to bring the nation's infrastructure to good condition. They also have a Critical Infrastructure blog. [Via Gristmill.]

July 4 might be Independence Day in another way, too

Gyan — Sun, 03 Dec 2006 22:55:04 -0800

Cost of Government Day - "n. the date of the calendar year, counting from January 1, on which the average American has earned enough in cumulative gross income to pay for his or her share of government spending (total federal, state, and local) plus the cost of regulation."

If you drive a car, I'll tax the...gas?

joshuaconner — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 01:32:33 -0800

Thomas Friedman:

The First Law of Petropolitics, in short, argues that the price of oil and the pace of freedom operate in an inverse correlation. As the price of oil goes up in what I call petroauthoritarian states—like Iran, Sudan, Venezuela—the pace of freedom goes down. These regimes can afford to be less responsive to their people and outside pressure. And as the price of oil goes down, the pace of freedom goes up because these regimes have to open up to the world if they want to deliver for their people, and they have to empower their people more.

But how to lower oil prices and help freedom on its proverbial march? Many, from Alan Greenspan to Andrew Sullivan to Ray Magliozzi from Car Talk think the answer may be to . . . raise the gas tax? The Pigou Club is an ever-updated list of economists, politicians and others who have advocated Pigouvian (or is it Pigovian?) taxes to not only lower oil prices, but reduce greenhouse gases, fix the federal deficit and strengthen our national security. Though some remain more than a little hesitant to jump on the bandwagon and others remain skeptical that the movement is anything more than "just talk," this could be an idea whose time has come, especially since the gas tax isn't as regressive one would think.

A defeat for "death tax" propagandists.

maud — Thu, 08 Jun 2006 15:31:58 -0800

GOP Senators have lost their bid to kill the currently-defunct estate tax. This defeat of the permanent repeal effort is a major triumph for the 98% of Americans who've never been in danger of having to pay the tax.

Watching the spinners paid by US

amberglow — Thu, 10 Mar 2005 10:44:03 -0800

Ever wonder who gets the spin money from the government to sell us everything from wars to reforms to reconnect the Army with the American people. A rundown on the seven biggest PR firms doing business with the government, and their refusal to come clean about what it is they're doing with our tax money. PRWatch has much, much more, including exposing the funding and associations pushing Social Security "reform"

Tax Man

Postroad — Wed, 28 Jul 2004 15:16:54 -0800

Tax Man Bush says tax cuts stimulate the economy. Unfortunately, he's fallen more than 2.2 million jobs short of the projection made by his own economists.

It's just money

MediaMan — Tue, 09 Dec 2003 09:58:31 -0800

What's a bigger waste of taxpayer money: Throwing a concert in a tunnel for a public works project years late and over budget or putting on a New Year's fireworks display for TV cameras only?

Born Again Liberal!

jonson — Mon, 18 Aug 2003 09:00:43 -0800

"We've got a conservative, evangelical Christian,Republican governor, trying to get a massive turnout of black voters to pass a tax increase so he can raise taxes on Republican constituents." Alabama Governor has massive and unexpected change of heart.

The view is nice from the yacht

four panels — Thu, 29 May 2003 06:14:49 -0800

The bait and switch. A last-minute revision by House and Senate leaders in the tax bill that President Bush signed today will prevent millions of minimum-wage families from receiving the increased child credit that is in the measure.

al gore did a little fundraising at a buddhist temple, this guy on the other hand ...

specialk420 — Mon, 14 Apr 2003 21:56:32 -0800

many of haliburtons subsidiaries pay no taxes as they are ensconsed in offshore tax havens. the vice president is collecting substantial sums in deferred payments, and sizable government contracts are being awared to this company without competition. should we ask our vice-president to encourage his former employer to pay corporate taxes like the most of the rest of americans and american businesses, considering the hefty sums of money being handed them by the american tax payer?

Hall — Fri, 16 Aug 2002 03:55:27 -0800

State income tax or not? Massachusetts voters get to decide on Nov. 5th. Is this a real possibility or just a publicity stunt for Carla Howell and the Libertarian party?

the_0ne — Tue, 09 Apr 2002 10:01:22 -0800

I'm curious, isn't this exactly opposite of what we're being told? I'm always hearing the wealthy are benefitting somehow from GWB's new tax plan. I'm certainly no-where near the top 5%, and now I don't want to be.

mattpusateri — Wed, 28 Nov 2001 13:08:44 -0800

White House predicts budget deficits until 2005. Uh... cause of the war, not monster tax cuts to businesses and billionaires... yeah, that's the ticket!

argybarg — Thu, 08 Nov 2001 10:39:47 -0800

"The sky won't fall, it will probably just trickle down." On whom? (Guess who.) Out here in Washington State voters just approved another in a series of initiatives that, collectively, choke off the state government's primary funding sources. What else are the results of the initiative process around the country? And are The People responsible enough to be trusted with it?

semmi — Wed, 29 Aug 2001 22:21:56 -0800

The tax bill was based on conservative ideology: not only did it offer the largest rate breaks to the richest people, but it had the explicit purpose of reducing the activities of the federal government.

frednorman — Sun, 22 Apr 2001 04:13:57 -0800

Europe's left makes Dubya's tax cut look small: Based on Congressional Budget Office projections, Mr. Bush's tax proposal would provide American taxpayers with an accumulated relief of about 3.6% of gross domestic product between 2002 and 2006. Compare this with the plan from Germany's coalition of Social Democrats and Greens: Finance Minister Hans Eichel will hand back 4.1% of GDP of the world's third-largest economy between 2001 and 2005.

quirked — Wed, 11 Apr 2001 13:18:49 -0800

75% of Americans favor Government funding of faith-based organizations. However, when asked about specific faiths, that number drops dramatically to 38% for Buddhist Temples and 29% for the Nation of Islam. So what did they expect, their own religion should get funds, but no others?

lagado — Mon, 05 Feb 2001 18:30:44 -0800

Proposed IRS rule could limit the freedom to link. The US Internal Revenue Service is proposing a rule that might make it inadvisable for not-for-profit organizations to provide links on their Web sites to any political site. The IRS is proposing to interpret any link to a political site from the pages of a nonprofit as evidence that the nonprofit is "engaging in political activity" and thus in danger of losing its 503(c) status.

phooey — Wed, 11 Oct 2000 06:33:37 -0800

"Tax Clarity was created to help you decipher what the tax plans by both presidential candidates mean to you personally." Enter some information from your paycheck and find out how much you'd save using either Bush's or Gore's tax plans. via dandot.