November 14, 2017: Giant Tax Cuts for Corporations Won't Mean Passing on Savings to Ordinary Workers

 

11/14/17: The GOP is pushing hard to ram “tax reform” through Congress and have a bill ready before Christmas. According to the White House Council of Economic Advisers this bill, not yet finalized, will be great for the typical household. Corporations will see taxes fall and pass on savings to workers. The ordinary American family will see an increase in wealth of $3,000 to $7,000. 

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“...those men who were tempted by the hope of measuring gold with a bushel...” 

Edward Gibbon, the great historian, referencing crooks of the Roman era, like crooks now

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We already know what corporations do to “cut” their tax burden. They don’t pass savings on to workers. Charles and David Koch, leading advocates of tax cuts, have watched their wealth balloon in the last decade. Each is worth an estimated $48.5 billion. So, they could already give raises to workers. 

They just don’t. 

This is especially odd since Koch Industries has been revealed to be piling up massive savings by working a complicated tax dodge through a network of interlocking companies in havens like Luxembourg  and the Cayman Islands. Companies located, on paper, in Luxembourg pay as little as 1% taxes. 

It’s not just the Koch brothers. A massive document leak indicates plenty of multi-national corporations already have the tax savings they need. Those savings haven’t translated into higher wages. The dodgers have moved “hundreds of billions” through Luxembourg banks and shell accounts. Those dodgers include American International Group (AIG), Amazon, Blackstone, H.J. Heinz, JP Morgan Chase, Burberry and Procter & Gamble.

 

In fact, donating to the GOP and expecting payback is a solid corporate investment. According to a British paper, seven large donors to the GOP in 2016, with a combined wealth of $142 billion, kept that wealth safe by hiding as much as possible in the Cayman Islands. Those seven include the Brothers Koch, Warren Stephens, owner of a payday lending company being sued for predatory practices, and Sheldon Adelson, the casino magnate who gave Republicans $100 million in 2012, $77.5 million in 2016, and $5 million for the Trump inauguration. Rounding out the pirate crew are Geoff Palmer, a dealer in Los Angeles real estate, Steve Wynn, another casino magnate, and Paul Singer, a hedge fund manager and “vulture capitalist.” 

In one recent poll 71% of Republicans, 85% of independents and 85% of Democrats said they did not think corporation tax cuts would result in an increase in their own pay. 

Correct. 

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December 9, 2017: No Funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and a $75,000-Per Night Hotel Suite

 

12/9/17: Funding for the popular Children’s Health Insurance Program, which covers nine million children from low-income families, ran out in September. 

The program costs $14 billion annually and Congress has failed to fund it for the next fiscal year. 

Meanwhile, the GOP “tax reform plan” is working its way toward a conference committee in Congress. At least $150 billion in tax cuts will go to the very wealthiest families who pay an estate tax. 

Just as the Republicans planned! Screw healthcare for kids! Suffering multi-millionaires and billionaires who once had to pinch pennies when traveling and bed down at Motel 6 will be able to upgrade accommodations once the tax plan passes.

 

Your ordinary oligarch will have a little extra left over to rent the Mark Penthouse, in the Mark Hotel, in New York City. Cost: $75,000 nightly. For that Mr. or Ms. Oligarch will get 26-foot ceilings, four fireplaces, five bedrooms, six bathrooms and 12,000 square feet to kick back and relax after a hard day hedging funds, sending American jobs overseas, buying politicians, and explaining why no one can afford to pay workers a $15 per hour minimum wage. 

Well, it’s a hard life; but somebody has to create jobs (for hotel maids, etc.). Your ordinary Captain of Industry has earned every amenity. For that $75,000 you also get a steam room, two powder rooms, two wet bars, a kitchen, a conservatory, and a library lounge, although if you are wasting a lot of time sitting around and reading, you probably should have stayed home.

All this and more for $75k per night.