As you probably already know, 2010 is the year to die is you are really wealthy. The Estate Tax disappears for one year only. Under the Bush plan, it would have reverted to its pre-2001 rates of 55% of estates over a $2 million exemption. President Obama proposed a 45% percent rate over a $7 million exemption.
Even this was too much for every single Republican and 9 Democrats in the Senate, who voted by 51-48 to enact a 35% rate over a $10 million exemptioin.
Here are the nine Democrats who voted against Obama's proposal
Baucus (D-libertarian nutcase paradise)
Bayh (D-preening)
Cantwell (D-Microsoft)
Landrieu (D-???)
Lincoln (D-WalMart)
Murray (D-Microsoft)
Nelson (D-God's waiting room)
Nelson (D-???)
Pryor (D-WalMart)
Tester (D-libertarian nutcase paradise)
While the wealthy are able to command a majority of support in the Senate, down to the umpteenth trust fund baby generation, and are able to command $Trilions for Wall Street, a simple bill to help medically needy children, SCHIP, still languishes in committee
The Party of the People at work....
Update: I've been reminded elsewhere that President Obama did sign SCHIP. The bill that is languishing is called "SCHIP Plus" and would help with premiums to pay for SCHIP. The point remains, that the wealthy have Washington's ear far more persuasively than do the working/middle classes.
Comments
Tester
I don't think that's true and if he voted this way I would suspect something else going on. Tester is more of a Populist and last I recall he was for H.R. 676 or something like that, so I'd go digging a little deeper on this vote and what was really in there.
You sure got the Senators from Washington right.
They are 100% Bill Gates personal representatives.
Bayh, I'm unsure about but I especially like the way you are labeling them as representing particular corporations.
I guess Chris Dodd represents the state of AIG, Citigroup, BoA too...
It would be nice to list all of Congress based on which corporation they represent.
I know Zoe Lofgren - Cisco, Intel as well as all immigration attorneys everywhere who make a killing off of people (it's huge business to process Visas and so on).
Bush-dog Dems from WA
I've long corrected people who proclaim Murray and Cantwell (especially Cantwell) as being dems, they are routinely Bush-dog faux dems, at best.
Sure, Cantwell will vote for a pro-labor bill -- after checking the pre-count vote and assuring herself it will NEVER pass.
It is not the voting record of these faux dems which count, it is their voting records on those bill which pass that is the true voting record -- or the correct negative vote to stop the anti-worker, anti-labor legistation from being enacted.
Unfortunately, during the 2006 primary, when an authentic democrat (Ms. Hong Tran) was running, Cantwell received an ignoramus-led 96% of the vote.
Unbelievable, when we have an educated electorate, which of course, we do not!
Corpocrats
I call it the mit abortion o without choice...
To me they are either complete corrupt, bought, controlled puppets for special interests, like how Bill Gates owns all of the politicians in D.C.....or they are not (which are unfortunately always in the minority and cannot grab power).
But the GOP vs. Dem argument, I personally think that's quite false since when one gets away from the Corporate corrupt I see more similarities than differences and the Progressives and the conservatives often come together...
Seriously it's true, check out Bernie Sanders, my favorite Senator and he has crafted legislation with all sorts of the political spectrum.....he's pretty good at getting some common sense amendment through and can cut through the "parties" on things that plain make sense as well.
Couldn't agree with you more.
Democrat, Republican, progressive, moderate, conservative, they've lost all meaning. The only thing that matters to me is being humanitarian and Bernie Sanders personifies that.
Federal Estate Tax Exemption...2010
Check it out...no estate tax applicable for estates over $10 mil. for year 2010. (Sounds like a nice recipe for Chile or Argentinia;-)