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Economics, Politics

The benefits of the tax bill keep increasing, so Leftists are getting more unhinged

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The tax bill in particular and Trump’s other economic initiatives in general (such as reducing regulations) are dramatically improving the financial situation of the entire country.  Nearly everyone benefits from one or more of these:

  • Tax cuts that help at least 80% of the population and make it much easier to file for most people.  And the few that do have to pay more are mainly the rich in Leftist states (as if you could do anything to please them anyway — and don’t they claim to like paying higher taxes?).
  • The stock market gains have been phenomenal.  Anyone with any sort of retirement account has to be enjoying this.  And it is all because of the Republican financial moves.  The stock market always looks forward, so this is all about these changes and has nothing to do with Obama.
  • Many companies have raised wages and/or given bonuses, including Wal-Mart.  This helps nearly everyone, because other companies will need to raise wages to keep up.  That supply and demand thing has its sharp edges, but in this case it will help.  And while wage increases can ultimately be inflationary, in this case the companies are using their tax savings to fund them so they won’t necessarily be raising prices.  Haven’t Leftists always lamented Wal-Mart?  Shouldn’t they be cheering now?

Also, while we don’t have a wall yet, illegal immigration is down and that will provide more jobs to citizens and help increase wages.   And the tax bill gutted Obamacare by eliminating the individual mandate.

This is all so spectacularly good for everyone — except the radical Leftists who hate Trump so much that they’d deny these amazing benefits to the people they claim to care about.

The Left will go on hating Trump and get even more unhinged, but how do you think all those people getting tax cuts, pay raises and fatter retirement accounts will feel?  Hopefully they’ll realize that Republicans have always been the adults in the room on economics. and that the Left has not only been lying to them but that they never really cared about them to begin with.  The Republicans can campaign on having kept some major promises.

Pass the popcorn.

Economics, Politics

The tax bill: Could have been better, but it is still great. Really great.

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I’m so glad to see the tax bill.  This appears to be the final version.  I was at a meeting with our auditors (a Big 4 firm) last week and got to hear from their chief economist, a tax partner and a former U.S. Representative.  They had similar takes on how this will play out.  Here are my thoughts as a finance executive / CPA who has spent a “little” time on analyses that determined what country would build certain products.

The best thing is the corporate rate reduction from 35% to 21%.  I wish it would have been 20%, even just for optics, but the improvement is huge.  I know that alone will bring a lot of jobs back to the U.S.  It is so simple that even Leftists should understand it – but either won’t, because they fail at basic economics, or will understand it but will lie about it because they know it will help minorities and the poor.

Here’s an example: Assume that you live near the border of two states and you are going to open a manufacturing plant, and all other things are equal (e.g., labor market, accessibility, etc.) except that one state has a tax rate of 35% and the other a rate of 21%.  Guess where even a Leftist will build his plant?  (There is a reason that people like John Kerry put their yachts in one state versus another, why people in North Carolina living near the border of South Carolina drive a few extra miles to buy gas, etc.).

Now simply expand that to countries.  You are much more likely to build in the U.S. now because of the lower rate.  That means more jobs for minorities / the poor.  And those people will pay taxes instead of collecting unemployment and welfare.  We’ll get a big double benefit.

Other stuff, all of which the Left will hate because it will actually help the U.S.:

  • It repeals the Individual Mandate of Obamacare!  I would have preferred a full repeal, but it is a big accomplishment and the Republicans can campaign on fulfilling part of their promise.
  • The marginal rates are down a bit across the board, which should help everyone.
  • The cap on state and local deductions will cost me and I don’t like the idea of having to pay federal taxes on the same income I used to pay state and local taxes.  But that might put downward pressure on home prices in, say, California (shouldn’t Leftists like that?) and might make the state and local taxes hard to foist on people.
  • The Left should like the limitation on the deduction of mortgage interest, but Senator Diane Feinstein was already grumbling about it.  Uh, what happened to their desire to soak the rich?  At least it only applies to new mortgages.
  • Estate taxes should have gone to zero.  They are ghoulish.  What fool would want the government to profit when you die?  Oh, right, the ones who favor estate taxes tend to be the people who profit when families are forced to sell businesses (e.g., Warren Buffet, who isn’t as generous as he makes himself out to be) and those who covet the success and wealth of others.
  • While the tax code will still be too complicated, it will definitely be simpler for countless people.  That’s a huge win.
  • Congress will have less money to pay off their sexual assault victims.
  • And for dessert, consider how much this will hurt the Democrats.  Not one of them will have voted for it, yet it will have a dramatic positive impact on the country.  So many new jobs!  More after-tax pay for countless people!  And all thanks to Donald Trump and the Republicans.  Just think of how much mileage he’ll get from pointing out how many minorities got jobs!