Considering that Bush, at one of his fancy dinners for rich people way back when, was caught on tape laughing and saying that his “base” was “the haves and the have mores,” I wouldn’t be at all surprised to learn that the addlepated and clueless McCain actually did say, at one of his fancy dinners the other day, that “people who make under $80,000 a year are too stupid to understand taxes.” But I can’t find a reliable source. Only a smattering of liberal blogs mention it. And in the eyes of many, that automatically makes it untrue.
That doesn’t mean it wasn’t said. It took about 48 hours for American mainstream media to even mention Kucinich’s recent impeachment proposal, while it had been front-page news in the rest of the world for two days, and all over the blogosphere. We checked constantly to see when (or if) it would make it to American news sites. A comment like this is the kind of thing the media wouldn’t touch unless they were forced by bloggers and foreign press to do so. They’re as spineless as our Democratic Congress.
Somebody was taping that dinner. Somebody was dishing out the caviar. Can we get a witness?
I do have some sources for the chart below, which was published by the Washington Post using data from the Tax Policy Center, a joint project of the Urban Institute and the Brookings Institution.
Obama’s tax plan gives the don’t have that muches and the barely haves and the have nots a much bigger break. McCain makes sure the rich get even richer and does jack for the rest. Duh.
It’s truly unfortunate that the less-informed Republican have nots simply accept it when the they’re told that voting Democrat means tax increases. There is such a strong tendency in Americans to swallow the sound bite and look no further, thanks to nearly 90 years of conditioning.
This trait, in conjunction with the generalized paranoia, intolerance, and religious fanaticism in that country, will probably get you John McCain as your next president.
So sad.
If you ask me, the tax thing is probably barely even a factor, though. It’s a crutch. It’s just probably easier to say you’re voting Republican because the Democrats will tax you than to say you hate gays and brown people and anybody who doesn’t love Jesus as much as you do.
Vincent offered an alternative theory: he says that all Americans believe they’re going to get rich, so they’re actually voting with their own glorious futures in mind. Interesting idea, and not so far fetched, I think.
I’m sure it’s a combination of all of the above.
If you know anyone who is too stupid to understand taxes, or who suffers from those uniquely American ills I’ve described, do them a favor and share the pretty picture above with them.
As if it will do any good.
(Tip from sknob via DMiessler via Reddit)
[Added Aug 29th: Calculate your tax break under Obama's plan.]