Tag Archives: Social Security

Economists Weigh In On Sanders’ Social Security Tax

Feb 20, 2016 TIMP Staff Leave a comment

By Juliegrace Brufke – Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders proposed lifting the cap on the Social Security payroll tax on those making over $250,000 a year, but economists argue the move won’t do much to extend the solvency of the program and may cause some negative repercussions on the economy.

Under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA), just the first $118,500 of income is taxed at 6.2 percent, with employers paying the other 6.2 percent. Sanders claims eliminating the taxable maximum would solve the program’s solvency issues for the next 50 years, but according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, lifting the cap would solve less than 50 percent of the long-term imbalance.

“There are plenty of reasons why removing the cap on FICA taxes is not the cure-all that campaign-trail rhetoric from Sen. Sanders claims it would be. For one, Bernie (and Hillary for that matter) is proposing to expand Social Security and other social programs in a number of ways,” Pete Sepp, president of taxpayer advocacy group the National Taxpayers Union, told The Daily Caller News Foundation. “According to our tracking project at www.candidatecost.org, in just one of the Democratic candidate debates alone, Sanders offered Social Security expansion proposals that would increase annual federal spending by more than $10.5 billion.”

The Democratic candidate said he plans on expanding the program, which is expected to run out of money in 2033, and the legislation he proposed would bring in enough revenue to, on average, provide seniors with an addition $65 a month.

“What this means is that raising the FICA cap under a Sanders presidency is not necessarily about preserving the solvency of the existing Social Security system, it’s also about making government bigger,” Sepp continued. “But even if there was not an additional cent of government spending on the table, busting the FICA cap would not suddenly ‘fix’ Social Security’s finances.”

Sanders argues from a “moral perspective,” increasing the tax burden on high-income earners is the right thing to do, saying it will help reduce income inequality.

“While liberals complain that the payroll tax is ‘regressive,’ our extremely ‘progressive’ income tax tilts the overall federal tax system hugely in favor of low earners,” Chris Edwards, director of tax policy studies at the Cato Institute, told TheDCNF. “CBO data, for example, shows that the highest one-fifth of households pay an average overall federal tax rate of 23 percent, while the bottom one-fifth of households pays an average rate of just 2 percent.”

According to Curtis Dubay, senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation, the move would indirectly hurt low- and middle-class Americans due to the negative impact it would have on economic growth.

“Lifting the cap would raise marginal tax rates on those effected by 15.2 percentage points. This would greatly curtail the incentive to work and slow the economy,” Dubay said. “Middle and low-income families would experience less opportunity because there would be fewer jobs and lowers wages for all Americans as a result.”

The cap was initially put in place to ensure no one was contributing more “than the protecting they received,” according to the Social Security Administration.

“Raising payroll taxes on higher earners will induce them to reduce work and avoid the tax man more, and that will cut both payroll and income tax revenues,” Edwards said.

Sanders’s overall economic plan has received strong criticisms from both political parties, with four former Democratic White House advisers coming out against his policies Wednesday, saying they are unrealistic and not supported by economic evidence.

Follow Juliegrace Brufke on Twitter

Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contactlicensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

Featured, Government Accountability, Politics

Mike Lee’s Viral Video of Rand Paul’s ‘Thieves in the Night’ Speech Passes 25m Views

Video Nov 6, 2015 Barry Donegan Leave a comment

Protecting Social Security from the Thieves in the NightThis is how it happens. Last night while you were sleeping, the Senate voted to steal $150 billion dollars from the Social Security Trust Fund. I joined 34 of my colleagues in a vote to prevent this raid. I would like to thank Senator Rand Paul for leading the fight to protect to Social Security from the thieves in Washington, who seem to think that if they steal from the American people at night while they are sleeping that they will get away with it. I was proud to vote with Senator Paul on his point of order that would have protected Social Security, and I ask you to help me shine a light on what Washington has tried to hide from you in the darkness of night. If everyone who sees this message shares it, it will reach millions of Americans. As someone who has been fighting for years to reform our broken government in Washington, I know it is exhausting, I sympathize with your frustration, and I understand your impatience. But don’t give up. Washington wants you to give up. Just remember, a vote to raid social security in the middle of the night in a desperate attempt to perpetuate an unsustainable spending addiction isn’t a sign of strength. It is a sign of weakness.

Posted by United States Senator Mike Lee on Friday, October 30, 2015

Last Friday, U.S. Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) posted a video of a 3 a.m. Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) speech on the floor of the Senate calling for senators to oppose the bipartisan budget deal before it was signed into law by President Obama earlier this week.

Lee posted the video, titled “Protecting Social Security from the Thieves in the Night,” and urged his Facebook followers to share it.

“Last night while you were sleeping the Senate voted to steal $150 billion dollars from the Social Security Trust Fund. I joined 34 of my colleagues in a vote to prevent this raid. I would like to thank Senator Rand Paul for leading the fight to protect to Social Security from the thieves in Washington, who seem to think that if they steal from the American people at night while they are sleeping that they will get away with it. I was proud to vote with Senator Paul on his point of order that would have protected Social Security, and I ask you to help me shine a light on what Washington has tried to hide from you in the darkness of night,” said Sen. Lee.

He added, “If everyone who sees this message shares it, it will reach millions of Americans. As someone who has been fighting for years to reform our broken government in Washington, I know it is exhausting, I sympathize with your frustration, and I understand your impatience. But don’t give up. Washington wants you to give up.”

Lee’s video has been shared over 1.3 million times and counting, and has been viewed by over 25 million people.

Lee said, “This Facebook post reached over 60 million people — more people than watched all three Republican presidential debates combined. For the simple fact that the American people are frustrated by what is happening in Washington.”

According to Fox News, the viral video’s popularity is “not far from a Facebook record” that “was reportedly set this year by the White House when a video from the Correspondents’ Dinner garnered 27 million views in just 36 hours.”

In the speech, Paul criticized the budget plan and said, “Do you know what? If you’re going to steal money from Social Security, if you’re going to take money from Social Security and you’re going to spend it on other concerns… People will say, ‘Oh, well we’re going to spend it on disability.’ Well, the Social Security fund was put forward as a pension plan. You have an obligation to those who put the money in. So stealing money from people who will be getting money in the future to pay for immediate concerns is robbing Peter to pay Paul.“

Election, Politics, Videos

Rand Paul: ‘Bernie Sanders Is Offering You Free Stuff’

Video Sep 21, 2015 Barry Donegan Leave a comment

During last weekend’s Heritage Action for America presidential forum in Greenville, South Carolina, Presidential candidate and U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R- Ky.) appeared delighted to be asked a question about independent U.S. Senator and 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.

“I was just hoping I’d get a Bernie Sanders question,” beamed Paul at about the 16 minute mark in the above-embedded full video of his presentation at the forum.

Speaking generally about Sanders’ socialist political leanings, Paul said, “Alright, Bernie Sanders is offering you free stuff. He wants to give you free healthcare. He’d give you a free car. He’d give you a free house. But guess what. There is no free lunch. That just means somebody else is paying for it, but they’re not showing you who’s paying for it.”

Paul had been asked about Sanders’ position in favor of expanding Social Security benefits. “It is a disservice to the country for Bernie Sanders to say he’s going to give you all more Social Security and, you know, money is going to grow on trees, and everybody’ll be rich, and there will be a chicken in every pot,” replied the Senator from Kentucky.

“The problem is Social Security is already short of money. For the last five years, Social Security pays out more than what comes in,” said Paul, who has called for preserving the program through a gradual increase in Social Security’s retirement age for future beneficiaries to 70 along with a means-testing program aimed at limiting benefit claims by individuals wealthy enough to retire without them.

Commenting on Social Security’s budget struggles, Paul blamed demographics. “People ask me, ‘Whose fault is it? Is it Republicans’ fault or Democrats’ fault?’ I say, ‘Nope. It’s your grandparents’ fault for having too many damn kids.‘”

Noting that the post-World War II baby boom produced a generation that did not reproduce at similar or greater rates than the one before, Paul said, “We used to have 16 workers for every retired person. Now it’s 3 workers for every retired person, and we’re living longer.”

“I have a bill that would fix Social Security,” said Paul, “It’s not fun, so I’ll promise you, you’re not gonna’ love it. You have to gradually raise the age of eligibility. For my age and younger, it just has to get a little older, a couple months every year, but it’s got to go to 70 for Social Security and Medicare, and I know nobody wants to hear that, but the opposite is I come up and tell you, ‘Everything’s O.K. You can have whatever you want, and it’s free.’ But we’re going to destroy the country if we do that.”

For more 2016 election coverage, click here.

Featured, Police State, Politics

EXCLUSIVE: Sheriff Stands Up to IRS, Cancels Land Sale

Feb 7, 2015 Priscilla Jones 228 Comments

WASHINGTON, February 7, 2015—New Mexico’s Eddy County Sheriff Scott London notified the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) via letter that the sale of county resident Kent Carter’s property is canceled until Carter receives due process of law and his appeal is heard. The certified letter dated February 4 received an immediate response from the Undersecretary of the Treasury’s office. According to the Treasury’s website, however, the public auction is still slated for February 19.

“Many officers have stood up over the years for the rights of citizens being victimized by the federal government,” said Sheriff Mack, founder of the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, “But Sheriff London is the first one to stand up to the IRS since the early 1990s.” Mack said, “His actions show courage and humility. London is setting a good example for the rest of our sheriffs.”

Approximately ten days before Christmas, U.S. Marshals broke in the door of Carter’s rental property with their guns drawn. The tenant was a young mother with a new baby—home alone while her husband was at work. Sheriff London was called to the property to intervene. He advised the Marshals that Carter’s case was in appeal and he deserved due process. They threatened to arrest London, but he stood his ground and they backed off.

Carter has battled the IRS for decades over taxes on the earnings of his modest construction business. One court document listed his debt at $145,000, a figure Carter says an assessing agent “pulled out of thin air.” Every time he challenged them, his bill would shoot up a few hundred thousand dollars. His legal complaints state that the IRS failed to adhere to its own tax code, did not use proper accounting methods, and that the collection activity was unlawful because no notices of deficiency were given. Carter says his private and confidential information, including his social security number, was filed in public records and given to third parties. The IRS countered that it can publish and disperse the private information of Americans if it is trying to collect their money or property. A judge agreed.

Carter says the IRS is currently claiming he owes $890,000, a figure that “doubled with the stroke of a pen.”

The Taxation & Revenue Department ordered Carter to cease “engaging in business in New Mexico” until his arbitrary tax debt was paid. Carter appealed this injunction on the grounds that it was both unconstitutional and vague, as it deprived him of his right to make a living and also prohibited him from, “carrying on or causing to be carried on any activity with the purpose of direct or indirect benefit.”

“The IRS fabricates evidence against citizens by pulling numbers out of a hat and adding fees,” said Mack, “They wear people down emotionally and financially until they can’t take it anymore. No citizen should ever have to fight the IRS for decades in order to keep his land.”

“The IRS is a lie. The income tax is a lie,” said Carter. “Why should they be able to take anything? They’re worse than the mafia.”

The Carter properties have liens placed against them. A locksmith was instructed to change the locks. The IRS authorized the United States Marshal Service to arrest/evict anyone found on the premises. London, however, physically stood in front of Carter’s gate until the Marshals backed down. A public auction on the front steps of the Eddy County Courthouse is scheduled, but the local county sheriff—trained in the Constitution—resisted.

Carter voluntarily vacated his property and relocated his mobile home to an undisclosed location. “I chose to leave to keep it from escalating to something ugly—like Ruby Ridge, Idaho,” he said. Carter said he advised the Marshals and IRS Agents who publicly claimed he had armed friends on his land, “If there is going to be any violence, it is going to be you who starts it.”

Carter says 100% of his Social Security benefits is seized each month by the IRS, in addition to $2,800 the agency drained from his bank account. Legally, the IRS can take no more than 15% of Social Security benefits.

Mack says banking institutions quiver when faced with the IRS’ gestapo tactics and generally hand over customers’ personal banking information, including access to accounts, without requiring a warrant or even any documentation. He encourages county sheriffs to brief every bank in their jurisdiction to refer inquiries from IRS agents to them.

Sheriff Mack is calling for the IRS to start following the law, including no “random” audits without probable cause, as they violate the Fourth Amendment. He asks them to stop committing crimes and rewarding IRS employees with bonuses for cheating on their personal taxes. “I agree with Senator Ted Cruz and others who say the IRS should be abolished,” said Mack. “It’s time they got off the backs of the American people.”

Carter says he prays daily for wisdom, and that he is surviving to be able to look into his grandchildren’s eyes and tell them he fought for their future and for America.

London is the first Republican to ever be elected sheriff in Eddy County. He distributes Bibles on behalf of Gideon International and met his wife in choir practice.

Shattering the left, right paradigm