Charlie Rangel Proposes Largest individual income tax increase in American history

Socialism at its finest from the man who chairs the House Ways & Means Committee:

The venerable New York Democrat finally introduced his $1 trillion legislation Thursday — affectionately called the “mother of all reforms,” since it’s said to be the largest reform of the tax code since 1986.

As expected, Rangel’s proposal would eradicate the alternative minimum tax — a levee expected to hit 24 million middle- and upper-income Americans this year — and cut the top corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 30.5 percent. It would also expand the child tax credit, standard deduction and earned income-tax credit for low-income families.

The costs will be offset by a 4 percent surtax on taxpayers earning more than $150,000 a year — $200,000 for couples — and by closing various corporate tax “loopholes.”

Another $48 billion will be raised by increasing taxes paid by hedge funds, venture capitalists, private equity managers, and other types of partnerships will also increase from 15 percent to 35 percent and limiting the executives’ ability to defer compensation tax-free offshore.

Congressional Republicans and the White House oppose the tax hikes. And House Republicans shot back immediately calling the bill the “mother of a tax hikes” and “one bad mother.”

“This crushing high tax rate will affect approximately 10 million taxpayers directly — including those who report business income, like small business owners and farmers — but the damage will ripple throughout our economy,” said Rep. Jim McCrery of Louisiana, the ranking Republican on the Ways and Means Committee.

Getting rid of the AMT is great, but not on the backs of others.  Reduce spending and lower taxes, then our coffers will fill even more.  This was proven with Bush’s tax cuts and can be done again.  But as typical, the Democrats wants to take from those who have it to ensure that those who don’t alway depend on them.

Congressman Ryan from Wisconsin has an intriguing alternative but either way federal revenue has increased from 1.7 trillion in 2003 to 2.5 trillion in 2007 while the deficit has been cut in half in 3 years to 162 billion, down from 400 billion in 2004.  Tax cuts help the economy, tax raising damages it.  Not too hard to figure out.

But we are talking about redistribution Democrats here.  All in the village ay?