Barack Obama thinks higher taxes are a good thing

Illinois Sen. Barack Obama went after the "We're not paying enough taxes to the government" vote today during a television interview in New York.

First, he said the Bush tax cuts ought to die. He likes that top marginal rate of 39%. Although the non-partisan National Journal recently declared him the most liberal of the 100 senators, Obama denied being a "wild-eyed liberal," which wasn't what the Journal called him, but it sounds good on TV where everything moves by so quickly.

Maria Bartiromo on CNBC's "Closing Bell" asked, "Who should pay more and who should pay less?" Predictably, the politician chose to talk about who would benefit from his higher tax plan, not who would get socked the hardest. But from his answers it sounds like the "wealthy" in his mind are those making more than $75,000.

"I would not increase taxes for middle class Americans and in fact I want to....

provide a tax cut for people who are making $75,000 a year or less,'' he said. "For those folks, I want an offset on the payroll tax that would be worth as much as $1,000 for a family.

"Senior citizens who are bringing in less than $50,000 a year in income, I don't want them to have to pay income tax on their Social Security. And as part of my overall approach to housing, I actually want to provide an additional 10% mortgage deduction, a credit, mortgage interest credit, for those who currently don't itemize."

"Why raise taxes at all in an economic slowdown?'' Bartiromo asked. "Isn't that going to put a further strain on people?"

"Well, look," said Obama, "there's no doubt that anything I do is going to be premised on what the economic situation is when I take office.''

Obama said, "I'm going to be sworn in in January -- we don't know what the economy's going to look like at that point."

He was asked about the liberal tag. "I believe in capitalism and I want to do what works,'' the senator replied. " But what I want to make sure of is it works for all America and not just a small sliver of America."

"Obama’s completely disingenuous dodge on whether he would raise taxes during a time of economic slowdown is belied by his vote earlier this month," said Alex Conant, a spokesman for the Republican National Committee. "Obama’s claims to the contrary, his votes to raise taxes on people earning as little as $31,850 are straight from the Democrats’ tax-and-spend playbook."

-- Andrew Malcolm and Mark Silva

Mark Silva writes for the Swamp of the Chicago Tribune's Washington Bureau.

Comments

[Liah]

Europeans pay more in taxes than us, the rich pays more taxes than the lower income families, everybody has access to health care .... and social benefits are one of the best specially for meddle class and down.

But... the government is strict in handling the taxes that people pay !!

... in a sense... Obama has a good point on this issue.

[dave]

to make a (not very) long story short(er): he doesn't care?

[j mayhew]

now isn't that just what we need, paying more taxes?
what are these candidates thinking?

people in this country are being taxed to death.
every state in this country has been spending money they do not have, at the expense of the taxpayer, supporting their ridculous spending on the backs of home owners.

TAX AND SPEND........I'AM SICK OF IT

[Tom]

It amazes me, given the hostility in this piece towards Obama, BLATANT hostility, that anyone thinks the LAT is a "liberal" paper. The clowns who wrote up this article are partisan Republican hacks.

And no, the National Journal is not "non-partisan". It's conservative.

[emily]

UNFAIR HEADLINE!!

Obama was talking about raising the capital gains tax, not midrange income taxes, and he also advocated rolling back Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy -- which would affect only the richest 1%of the country

He did NOT say he would raise taxes for people making over $75k/yr. He said he lower taxes for those making less. There's a difference; people making $75k/yr would probably see no change in their tax rate.

The bias in this article is startling, and ending with a quote from an RNC spokesman with no remarks at all from Democratic spokesman? That's lazy and irresponsible.

[Steve]

LOL!

"And as part of my overall approach to housing, I actually want to provide an additional 10% mortgage deduction, a credit, mortgage interest credit, for those who currently don't itemize."

Yeah, let's give people more incentive to borrow even *more* money they can't afford to repay. That's worked really well so far...

[madison]

I think that the taxes should stay the same and government should try not to spend so much like 500 dollars for a lousy bolt.

[Finally]

FINALLY the rich people in america might just have to pay their fair share of taxes just like the rest of us, instead of just using loopholes to pay less taxes than people making 10x less than them!

[Oats already digested]

Am I the only one to see that the masks are finally falling.
Going after The Wë're not paying enough taxes to the government vote ¨ says it all. Welcome to the goulag and Stalinist blood bath years. Does anyone recognize the
George Soros/Marxist Leninist spectre ?Vote Obama if
you agree that welfare recipients need to get $50000.00
a year before they start paying income tax. Thats the
liberal way.

[Joe 6 Pack]

It's each man for himself,said the elephant dancing amongst the chickens. Senator and soon to be president
Obama is about to eradicate this greed culture.It's about
time those earning $75000.00 and over start paying for
the rest of us and that the USA pay back to the UN the
billions and billions plus interest that we are in default.The
UN must assume it's role as super government if we are
to have social justice on this planet.Private property and
so-called free-enterprise are about to be redefined for the
people and by the people's true representative.Wealth
redristribution is coming soon to a theatre near you.Amen.

[Lean and mean]

Much higher taxes and stricter regulating from goverment
is what our nation needs if we want to do away with
junk food and obesity.$7.00 a day per adult and $5.00 for
minors has to be the maximum legal amount for food.
Ground breaking legislation is nearly completed and
Senator Obama has set aside $100. million for an October
media blitz on this. Real change will not be an empty slogan.

[janjan]

The scariest part of this interview is how absolutely clueless this man is about the economy. He was obviously ad libbing his comments and had no idea what he was talking about. He is completely unqualified to be President.

[Jimmy]

Higher taxes are never, ever the answer. The biggest dirty little secret that the lib's don't want you to know is that since the Bush tax cuts, government tax collections are at record HIGHS. It's amazing what happens when the government lets people do what they want with their money. Keeping more money in the actual economy meant more jobs and better pay. Obama is absolutely clueless about capital gains. He talks out of both sides of his mouth, saying whatever sounds good in a particular situation. Change indeed: Just more liberal garbage. One last comment for the class-warfare crowd. The rich will always pay more in taxes than you do, even with a flat tax or national sales tax.

[Troy]

For all the libs or just the anti war, politically and economically clueless obamamites, check out this website to understand how important the bush tax cuts are. www.taxfoundation.org/news/show/250.html

This is the most recent IRS release of personal income tax information and who is paying what. The top 1% of the richest people in the country paid more taxes, under the bush tax cuts, then has ever been paid before. The top 25% richest people in the country pay for 86% of all income taxes paid. The poorest 50% of the people in the country paid a measeley 3% of the total federal income tax revenue. So, tell me again how the rich need to start paying their fair share of taxes like everyone else?? Ignorance is bliss I imagine!

[Yes we can raise taxes by 50 %]

Liberalism is not free..Entitlements cost money, and all those cry-babys earnibg 75k and more need to put aside
another 10 grand to meet their social responsabilitys and
duty to the less priviledged of this planet. We need to wage war on poverty wich is the root cause of terrorism.
Obama is our man and increasingly higher taxes the only
recipe for achieving world equality.

[Debbie]

I live in Michihan, We have the worst unemployment in the country. So the Dem. Gov. Jenny Granholm had the same idea and tax us even more now .people are moving out of the state. Same idea that Obama has tax the rich then go after the middle class because there is not enough rich so in order to get more...... soak us All.
Hey his pastor taught him that what do you expect?

[Girl with the bushy armpits]

How about the two Godless mercenarys running the
campaign of the untalented bowler, racist pastor apologist
slum lord sycophant....yes Axelrod and Plouffe raking in
tens of millions before their ¨client¨starts realy punishing
all the achievers earning 75K and over ?I guess Soros
will have to resume his criminal foreign exchange speculating operations and so long to all the suckers of
moove on dot org.

[Grand son of Joseph Stalin]

Raising taxes and a government administered economy
has already been tested and prooven the best way to
bankrupt a national economy.Obama is oblivious to the
teachings of history like all dogmatic socialists who have
little or no experience in the private sector of the economy.
Add to this the backing of the low morality democrat left wing
nomenclatura and you get an ACLU monstrosity as a
government that will preside over the destruction of the
better aspects of the American miracle. Rank and file
democrats have a choice between the precipice and
Hillary. Should Hillary fail to get the nomination...MCCain
of course.

[Needed Urgently-J. Edgar Hoover]

Loss of virility and strict discipline have taken this nation
closer to chaos than at any time in the past. We are beeing
taken over by the spiritual pestilence spewing leftists and
racist anti-America pro civil unrest rabble rousers. Time
has come for another J.Edgar Hoover no nonsense
referee.

[Those who do Itemize-]

For those who do itemize...Do not pass Go...do not collect
$200.00. Brace for a serious meltdown and repeated
audits by the IRS wich is Obama's pet gov. agency that
will play a major major role in your miserable lives.This
man aint no Santa Claus for the achievers.

[Former MArine]

About the only thing scarier than Obama possibly being President is the absolute cluelessness of some of his followers who have posted here. You people really are ignorant, aren't you? Who pays your salaries (assuming you actually work)? Where do you think jobs come from? People in trash cans? Good grief. I fear this country won't last much longer if Obama gets elected.

[G Post]

If taxing the rich at an even higher rate is a good idea, why not just take ALL of their money and give it to the poor? That would be equality, right? However, what do you do then? You now have a country where those who know how to create jobs and create wealth have no capital from which to operate. This is why Reagan's tax cuts had such a huge effect: it gave money back to everyone, even the rich. The poor took their money and just blew it (as predicted), but the rich responded to the less regulatory, lower taxation environment and spurned economic growth at a pace unrivaled in history. I know this makes no sense to a liberal, but at least it will be something for the rest of you to consider. Raising taxes is never a good idea, because the government is horrible at efficient management and wealth generation.

Remember: The New Deal PROLONGED the depression. By no means did it help.

G

[Greg Okc]

Wow there are some posters here that have a clue... People with wealth make it possible to create wealth for others. Ever heard of investment? Try and start a business without any capitol.

[Xtreme Arrogance]

So this old Democrat mantra of high taxes and calling
middle class the rich is on again. Obama's economic acumen is as lazy as his patriotism . Xtreme hate and
xtreme socialism go together like a horse & carriage,
just as Soros,moove on org,Wright and Farrakhan make
for a very explosive cocktail.

[damien]

So giving rich companies and people tax breaks so they can outsource american jobs to pay less money to employees and benefits helps out America... how?
You rethugs and demo just kill me! It's not the things you say it's the things you don't say that is the problem.

Jesse Ventura for President!!

[Eric]

Hack article. The $31,850 number is proof. This is only true when combined with their spouses $31,850. Come live in my shoes and I'll show you how I'd love to pay higher taxes on an income of $75,000.

[Kyle D]

Social responsibilities???? Duty to the less privilaged??!!! If you idiots want to take you''re money and give to charity that's you're business. But dont tell me that I have a responsibility to give the government X amount of dollars so it can be redistributed irresponsibly. Give to charity as much as you want. Keep the government out of my pocket. You people truly are morons. You celebrate the government taking more of you're money and giving it to those who refuse to work for it. YOu people are mindless idiots who need to be led around by the hand like a child by the liberal media because you lack the ability to think for yourselves and use a little common sense.

[twalt]

Well after years of working my tail off, all the overtime and second jobs, I finally broke the 100k ceiling last year. I also am apparently wealthy, hence screwed tax wise. Guess I should scale back and try remain middle class. But that would mean losing my home and sending my kids to community college. Why the hell is middle class not redifined geographically? My 100k helps keep my head above water here in California. It wont have me sailing around in a yaught.

[Kathy]

Obama's a Marxist period. Read some history about Marxism folks, befor you embrace it.