Corporate Taxes - The "effective" tax rate and the "statutory" tax rate - BIG DIFFERENCE!

• The corporate share of federal tax revenue has dropped by two-thirds in 60 years — from 32% in 1952 to 10% in 2013.
• General Electric, Boeing, Verizon and 23 other profitable Fortune 500 firms paid no federal income taxes from 2008 to 2012.
• 288 big and profitable Fortune 500 corporations paid an average effective federal tax rate of just 19.4% from 2008 to 2012.
• Profitable corporations paid U.S. income taxes amounting to just 12.6% of worldwide income in 2010.
• U.S. corporations dodge billions in taxes by shifting profits to subsidiaries — often post office boxes in tax havens.
• U.S. corporations officially hold $2.1 trillion in profits offshore — much of it in tax havens — that have not been taxed here.

The "statutory" corporate tax rate may be one of the highest in the world, but the "effective" tax rate (what they actually pay) is one of the lowest.

The National Debt - $6.5 trillion since Obama and $4.9 trillion under Bush

George W. Bush more than doubled the debt. Bush responded to the 9/11 attacks by launching "The War on Terror" (two unpaid wars) which drove military spending to record levels. Bush also used the 2001 recession as an excuse to pass the Bush tax cuts, which reduced revenue by giving tax breaks that the rich mostly benefited from. Bush also approved a $700 billion bailout package for the banks during the 2008 global financial crisis (which started in part by Clinton's deregulation of the banks.)

Both Presidents Bush and Obama had to contend with higher mandatory spending for Social Security and Medicare (which is less susceptible to a president’s policy preferences than discretionary spending; and that is spending that Congress must approve of an annual basis. Stagnant wages mostly contributes to the shortfall in the Social Security Trust Fund. Bush also first approved expanding unemployment benefits (99 weeks) in July of 2008 in response to the Great Recession (which officially began in December 2007.)

Obama didn't inherit Clinton's economy, he inherited Bush's. Obama's budgets included the economic stimulus package, which included cutting payroll taxes (and at the insistence of the GOP, extended the Bush tax cuts for two more years). Obama also extended Bush's unemployment benefits, which was contingent on extending the Bush tax cuts. Under Obama, Congress also funded job-creating public works projects. Obama's budget also included big increases in defense spending. And federal income was down, thanks to lower tax receipts from the 2008 financial crisis (mass unemployment). Obama also sponsored Obamacare, which was designed to reduce the debt over 10 years (although, these savings didn't show up until the later years).

Government Budgets and Household Budgets (Apples and Oranges)

The U.S. may have $19 trillion in national debt, but it's not $19 trillion "in the hole". The U.S. most likely has over $200 trillion or more in net assets. The U.S. government's real constraint is inflation, not solvency (which hasn't been a problem). The "national debt" is a vastly different issue than the one the GOP and media usually harps about (with regards to the budget deficit and government spending). The U.S. government can be thought of as a contingent currency issuer who can issue funds to spend, making it very different from a typical household budget.

And none of this even touches on the operational realities behind the United States monetary system, and the fact that we’re not going bankrupt unless we choose to go bankrupt...and we’re not going to be unable to pay the bills on debt denominated in a currency we can print, unless we choose not to pay those bills.

If you had a job paying $50,000 a year and you owed the bank $150,000 on a mortgage, would you be very concerned about your debt or budget? Now imagine you also had $1 million in gold coins stashed away in assets. Now imagine you could also tax your rich neighbor. Now imagine you can also print your own money. That "household budget" and your "household debt" doesn't look so bad after all.

Scrap the Cap

Eliminate the $118,500 income "cap" that is subjected to Social Security taxes so that even all members of Congress have to pay this tax on 100% of their earnings (They make $174,000 a year). That also means, don't just subject hourly wages reported on W-2 forms, but also income from capitals gains (which is taxed much less than the top marginal tax rate for wages — 23.8% vs. 39.6%)

In those rare occasions when you can pin a "skills shortage" promoter down as to exactly what skills are lacking they will say its creativity, critical thinking, and communication - all skills not usually part of a typical stem curriculum, but are part of those dread liberal arts courses

vehicle & parts orders were $53,253 million, up 4.0% from $51,226 mllion, nondefense aircraft and parts wee a $16,507 million, down 6.0% from $17,556 million, and defense aircraft and parts were at $4,415 million, down 13.1% from $5,081 millon....that does not add up to the total transportation equipment new orders of $83,231 million, up 4.7% from $79,476 million..

best i can figure is that they're including a big military vehilcle order in here that they don't show in the totals above...

That is just percentage change against itself in category. I don't have the solid figures but assume autos durable goods sales are $80 billion for the month but airplanes would be say $10 billion or so. The overall change would be impacted most by auto sales since by volume and dollar amounts, they are most of transportation sales on a monthly basis.

You are against any reduction in Social Security and advocate for increasing benefits. Yet Social Security cannot maintain the current levels of benefits, much less increased ones you advocate. What would you change to ensure Social Security would be solvent? Something must change, or it will be a ~17%(?) reduction once the trust fund is exhausted. Is that your preference for dealing with the issue?

He's really taking off and kicking out that Jorge Ramos univision reporter just gets a hand clap from me. That guy constantly claims anyone who isn't for open borders or unlimited migration is a racist. That is not reporting in the first place.

"This measure does not include any unemployed person who has become discourage from the inability to find a job and has not looked for a job in four weeks."

Those "discouraged" workers may still be looking for a job. We're not asked about our employment searches after we're no longer eligible for unemployment benefits... at least I know I've not been asked.

We've seen this movie before - eighty years ago.

In a book entitled "It Can't Happen Here" Sinclair Lewis foretold the coming of
an ultra-wealthy "Man Of The People" who swept the "establishment" aside and rose to dictatorial power.

Donald Trump, meet your literary counterpart, Berzelius "Buzz" Windrip.

In his seminal book "Zero Hour" , "Buzz" Windrip detailed all of the crimes of the current establishment, from excesses of speculation to the poverty and misery
(inflicted by the establishment class) upon the people.

But The Donald can't do it alone. He is going to need volunteers. He will need his
S.A., "Freikorpen" and "Blackshirts" to do battle in the streets for him.

He will need ARMED companies and battalions of "volunteers" to break up the rallies of his GOP rivals and put fear into them. If handled right, the police forces
of cities across the country are NATURAL allies, given as how they are under attack by the same corrupt and beyond-rotten "establishment".

America doesn't need a Hitler - but a Mussolini or Franco, well now you're talking.

A ten to twelve-year period of "Corrective Realignment" (even Great Britain had its Cromwell), would do wonders.

If you tell a lie often enough and loud enough it becomes the truth.