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The Push for Tax Hikes to Pay for Government Waste

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    Americans for Tax Reform President Ryan Ellis argues the Obama Administration wants to ramp up government spending and increase taxes to pay for it.

  • Duration 3:46
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Our government backed company going bankrupt electric car battery maker and -- one.

Failing despite getting more -- 118.

Million bucks promise from the Department of Energy.

Well it's not as -- illiterate still pretty big and our first guest says this is yet more proof that Washington DC should not raise taxes on anyone.

Until they find a better way to spend the money they're already getting he's Ryan Ellis and he's the director -- Americans for Tax Reform.

I sir -- ever -- basically went belly up filed bankruptcy within days of the president's State of the Union Address we've got the lender already going belly up.

Beacon power are already going belly up that to getting stimulus promises.

What do you make of all this.

Well it's right out of the playbook that the Obama administration wants to provide they wanted to ramp up government spending and they want to ramp up taxes to pay for it.

What they don't understand is that we already have an extremely steeply progressive tax system.

Most of the income taxes in this country are paid by high income people that if you don't make a high amount of money you're probably not paying much in taxes at all income or otherwise.

-- -- dealers let's start taxpayers under the electric bus because we're gonna have more big government and the rich should just pay for it.

But I am -- -- do you think that Bill Gates are Warren Buffett understand that nobody wants Warren -- or Bill Gates money wasted on things like this.

Well most people.

-- an intuitive understanding that money that goes to the government is going to be spent less wisely.

The money that's left in the private sector for people like Bill Gates and Warren Buffett and others to actually create jobs.

But the thing that nobody ever talks about what those.

Is they always take a look at the capital gains -- the capital gains rate and individuals is 15%.

And they say oh my god isn't that so -- But the capital gains rate is actually a second tax on the same income.

First you had to pay tax on it when it was corporate income being passed along to the shareholder we have a 35% corporate income tax rate in this country.

Which is the highest in the developed world the capital gains taxes what you Pam what's left so actually if you look at it.

The people like Warren Buffett and some a Mitt Romney's in -- and others are actually paying close to a forty to 50% tax rate on that money not fifteen.

All right so yes the president has already said -- that are -- in the US corporate tax rate is too high it's second only to Japan.

Any I think the issue here is is also that that theme is that you know the nasty 1%.

Destroys jobs the government creates jobs even though as you pointed out.

So lender of beacon power -- -- one is going belly up Fannie Mae Freddie Mac not doing so great vary you know where somebody gonna go toward bailing out failed companies in Detroit.

The issue is we only collect 2.5 trillion what in federal tax revenue.

And if you tax the rich a 100% the millionaires the 100% nearly gonna pull in a 186 billion bucks so hardly pay the interest costs on the debt.

Do you feel like that's a story line that needs to be reported that's -- storyline that the American people are not hearing about from anyone.

Well if you were to do that let's say you were to theoretically put -- 100% tax rate on anyone making more than a million dollars a year.

Which to listen to some of these people seems to be the only thing that would make them happy.

You have to assume that those people would dutifully still burned all the money that they're still earning only to turn it over to the government of course they wouldn't do that.

That they would find other ways to earn the money in a tax free basis or more likely they would just simply go home they aren't live off of their existing earnings.

-- if you have one thing to say to Warren Buffett and Bill Gates what would you tell them.

What I would tell them is rather than agitating for higher taxes in order to make yourselves feel better.

What you really should be fighting for our lower tax rates -- people trying to get his Richard view so that we can actually create some jobs in this country again.

Are right thank you Ryan Ellis tax experts are good to -- -- -- really appreciate.