But, of course, he can’t get elected to do that unless he lies to the voters. Jonathan Chait at NYMag‘s Daily Intel on “Mitt Romney’s big tax problem“:
Mitt Romney has been insisting for a while that he will not cut taxes for the rich, which everybody took to mean that he would lock into place the enormous, expiring Bush-era tax cuts for the rich, but cut taxes no deeper than that. He has said so over and over again. Here he is saying, “If I’m going to use precious dollars to reduce taxes, I want to focus on where the people are hurting the most, and that’s the middle class. I’m not worried about rich people.” And here’s Romney insisting, “I’m proposing no tax cuts for the rich.”
__
Today the Tax Policy Center analyzes his plan, and it turns out that Romney would, in fact, cut taxes for the rich, even below current levels. The highest-earning one percent would get an additional tax cut averaging $82,000 a year. Romney’s plan would also raise taxes on the lowest quintile by an average of $157 a year…
Greg Sargent at the Washington Post lines out the numbers:
Here’s the bottom line. When comparing how people are doing under today’s tax policies to how indivuals would do under Romney’s plan in 2015, these are the changes you’d see:
__
Individuals in the top 0.1 percent, or those making over $2.8 million, would get an income tax cut of nearly half a million dollars.
____
Individuals in the top one percent, or those making over $629,000, would get a cut of over $80,000.
__
Meanwhile, people in the other percentiles would see a tax reduction, but a far smaller one. Those in the 95-99 percentiles would see a tax cut of around $7,500. Those in the 90-95 percentiles would see a tax cut of around $2,500. And those in the 80-90 percentiles would see a cut of around $1,100.
__
Broken down by quintile, those in the fourth highest would see a tax cut of roughly $6,900; those in the third highest would see a cut of around $500; and those in the bottom two would see a slight increase…
You could say that Willard Romney is just another religiously-oriented GOP candidate; his true religion is the almighty dollar, every blessed one of which he wants taken from the heathen hands of peasants like us, and tendered to the pious care of his fellow Point-One-Percenters.
Brachiator
Romney is doubling down on trickle down. It will be sad but interesting to see how many of the GOP faithful will go along with this.
Brian S
Politifact will probably call this “partly true.”
sb
Has there been a weaker Republican nominee than Romney in recent times? At any time?
He has nothing to offer. He doesn’t have McCain’s resume (yeah, I know), he doesn’t have W’s folksy, down-home “wisdom”, he’s nowhere near as experienced as Bob Dole (yeah, I know), he’s kind of a poor man’s George Bush (more like a homeless man’s George Bush as a candidate)… and the Repugs are freaked out because he’s Mormon.
Setting aside the excellent points Anne makes in her post, I’d say he can’t win but I said the same thing about W–twice–so, fuck it, back to the bottle for me. Good night now.
FlipYrWhig
I can’t believe Mitt Romney wants to give these blah people so much of other people’s money. Rih Santorum is right.
Yutsano
Adjusted that fer ya AL.
Redshift
You know, a few years ago, it dawned on me that is was possible that a considerable number of Republican officeholders sincerely believed it when they claimed they were cutting taxes for “the middle class,” it was just that they also sincerely believed that the middle class started at incomes of around $150,000, and everyone below that was “poor” (or “working class” if it was around election time.)
But Romney’s not one of those. There’s no way to read Romney’s claims about his tax plan as anything other than trying to fleece the rubes.
Brachiator
@sb:
Dubya. The GOP loves to stick with a winning formula.
MikeJ
@sb:
How many planes do you think he could crash between now and November?
kdaug
And so we dance. These are the stakes.
It’s do or don’t time.
Hill Dweller
Thomas Frank was on Maddow’s show marveling at the Republican insanity(and promoting a book). After decades of deregulation, a couple of bubbles and busts, a few recessions(one really big one), and a gutted middle class, the Republicans came back into power by doubling down on the same crazy policies.
I’m hoping the public has seen enough crazy shit from the Republicans in the last year to kick them out of power, but our electorate is pretty ignorant.
If the economy doesn’t improve over the next 6 or 7 months, a Romney win isn’t out of the question.
chrome agnomen
coh-suher.
opie jeanne
Anne Laurie, yes, business is his religion. The Mormon Church is a business, a very big business.
Yutsano
@opie jeanne: Mammon demands its sacrifice early and often. And its appetite is never satiated.
Redshift
@Hill Dweller: Once you’ve been through a cycle where they are able to find justification for tax and regulation cuts in completely opposite economic conditions, anyone who doesn’t catch on that their policies aren’t intended to “work” except to the benefit of their class is a sucker.
Kinda like: There’s a sucker at every p*ker table. If you can’t figure out who it is, it’s you.
(Frickin’ moderation!)
opie jeanne
@Yutsano: True.
This evening a friend of mine who is African American and a Republican and pissed off at Newt, posted his racist comments from earlier today on Facebook, and I agreed with her and pointed out the numbers of white people on welfare, the huge number of children and the elderly, and this is the reply from one of her FB friends:
“That is absolutely correct Mrs. X but you must consider that only12% of the population is black so it evens out. Mrs X the democrats would be proud of you.”
I don’t know which pissed me off more, him calling me by my married name or applying the RINO label when I pointed out the truth. I answered that yes, that means that 42% of AfAms are on welfare, but repeated the chunk about who is really on welfare, including the fact that many ARE employed but can’t feed themselves on what they make, and I told him my marital status was none of his business.
I wonder which one of us is going to be kicked to the curb. I’m white and I wonder if he is too. I don’t want to believe he’s an African American, but he could be. It’s disheartening.
BGinCHI
It’s a boy!!!!
Mrs. BG and 8lb 3oz boy resting comfortably.
Name TBA.
Wow, what a day. Will send pics tomorrow for anyone interested.
opie jeanne
@Yutsano: I think that’s kind of why so many Amway sellers are also Mormons.
I worked as a marketing manager for a TCBY (fancy title for “take samples and coupons to various companies”) and did a sampling for an Amway meeting. The meeting was like a religious service but not that of a mainstream church, more like Holy Rollers.
I couldn’t wait to get out of there. I handed out the samples and fled.
wobblybits
@BGinCHI: Parabens! Congratulations on the new addition!
opie jeanne
@BGinCHI: Congratulations!
As a fisherman would say, “that’s a keeper”. :-)
Redshift
@BGinCHI: Congrats!
Exercising great self-restraint, I will refrain from making suggestions.
Yutsano
@opie jeanne: This election is going to get very ugly, mostly because the Republicans do NOT like their current plate of options much. I’m certain in the end they will swallow Willard because they have no choice, but they will have a bear of a time trying to sell him in the general election. He still will get a sizable chunk of the vote because, well, nigras and hippies. But they don’t like it. And I’m gonna enjoy every second.
The prophet Nostradumbass
@BGinCHI: Congratulations!
ETA: as for a name, may I suggest Willard? No?
eemom
@Yutsano:
I’m not so sure.
I’ve never been one to tempt fate, but I think it’s gonna get purtier and purtier from our perspective — for those very reasons you mention — and that it might just end up being a STOMP.
There, I said it. [madly knocking every wooden surface in sight]
eemom
@BGinCHI:
Yay! Big boy!
Grats to all of you, and hope the lady gets lots of sleep tonight.
Shari
@BGinCHI: Congratulations! Wishes for best health to the mother and child
gwangung
@BGinCHI: Yay-hey! Congrats!
Yutsano
@BGinCHI: OMEDETO GOZAIMASU YO!!
@eemom: Oh every time Willard gets more exposure I relax a little bit more and more. This country is still racist as fuck and it’s a very thin veneer of civility that keeps it from bubbling to the surface. That’s gonna get Mittens at least 45% of the vote no matter what. It’s that last 10% that count. And that, really, is what we’re fighting for.
The Other Chuck
@sb:
He has presidential hair.
Villago Delenda Est
OK, time to cue the obligatory Claude Rains clip.
Villago Delenda Est
@BGinCHI:
Many congrats to you, mom, and the baby to be named later.
I think OvenMitt and Rih are taken.
opie jeanne
@Yutsano: I have a Mormon cousin who has started pushing Mittens a bit on Facebook.
I teased her today and asked why no one likes Huntsman, does he have cooties because Obama praised his service as ambassador to China? She took it well, said he was good too, but said Mitt is a great businessman.
Why is business experience supposed to be valuable in running a country? The US is not a country and should not be run like one.
Whammer
Mormons are not only big Amway sellers, but they are very much involved in just about every multi-level-marketing business. Herbalife, Quixtar, NuSkin, Shaklee, you name it. http://notamormon.blogspot.com/2010/03/mlms-and-mormons.html
piratedan
@BGinCHI: congrats to you and yours……take lots of pictures because you’ll be amazed at how fast they grow.
Hill Dweller
@eemom:
If those numbers(per TPM) hold up, and Romney wins SC handily(essentially wrapping up the nomination), that could be trouble for our side. He’ll have the rest of the year to tack back to the center, with really no one but Dems attacking him.
Ideally, the clown car circus drags on for a while longer, forcing Romney to spend more and take some shots from his right.
Brian S
@BGinCHI: The Bluth family may want to start a college fund in his honor. Congrats!
amk
@BGinCHI: Congrats. Where is the cigar ?
Anne Laurie
@BGinCHI: Congratulations! Email pics when you’ve got the chance, and I’ll front-page the newest member of the BJ community (hmm, that doesn’t sound right)…
MikeJ
Mazel tov!
Martin
@BGinCHI: Congrats! You made people!
BGinCHI
Thanks All!!!!!!!!
Really happy but also kind of wrecked. Wow.
Can I just say:
When the Bible has the 3 wise men visiting the baby Jesus, they got that all wrong. It’s the WISE WOMEN who work like hell to bring babies into this world.
Anyone who fucks around with womens’ rights and reproductive health should be seriously fucking ashamed of themselves and banished from decent company.
amk
@BGinCHI:
In honor of lil BG.
Steeplejack
@BGinCHI:
Congratulations!
WaterGirl
@BGinCHI: I’m so happy for you and your family! Whew. Now we can all go to sleep. :-)
P.S. Has he cracked a joke yet? I hope he has your sense of humor.
PeakVT
Drum has some charts which show that as bad as Romney plan is, the others candidate’s manage to have even worse plans.
Yutsano
@BGinCHI:
Go pass out. Now. It’s gonna be your last good night of sleep for a very very long time.
(Old friend from college just had a girl tonight too!)
@opie jeanne:
Because shut up that’s why! No really, that’s the answer. It’s the ultimate free market thinking: everything needs to operate like a business.
Martin
Is it just me, or is Obama seriously nipple twisting the GOP right now? NLRB and CFPB recess appointments that get an extra year on the clock. Allowing undocumented immigrants to stay in the US so long as they have immigration paperwork being processed. Cutting military.
I think the 2012 election is going to be about everything Obama wants it to be about.
BGinCHI
@WaterGirl: If you think shitting black tar all over is a joke, then yes, this kid is hilarious.
Well, funnier than Leno at least.
(seriously, though, thanks)
BGinCHI
@Yutsano: Always the matchmaker…… I hear you though on the sleep. Not sure I can sleep for a while though.
MikeJ
@Martin: Not only has he twisted their nips, he’s done it masterfully.
The republicans keep talking about suing Obama but a) nobody but the Senate has standing and b) any sane court (so watch out for the 4th) will say it’s a political matter and should be handled by political means. There’s also the fact that the even if the courts wanted to rule on it, the Senate has the means at their disposal to end the controversy (i.e. voting for or against the nominations). There doesn’t really seem to be anything at issue.
Which means that really the only recourse is impeachment. Gingrich running, impeachment…it all calls to mind Clinton’s 65% approval rating.
Jebediah
@BGinCHI:
Congratulations!
May I suggest the name Roxocrates? It is a fine, dignified name with a grand history, and he’d probably be the only Roxocrates in his class (although he may end up wanting to go by Rocky…)
Martin
@MikeJ: Well, there’s no way they’d dare sue. Obama’s authority is there in Article 2, and the issue would instantly shift to the constitutionality of the filibuster.
ruemara
@BGinCHI: Congratulations! I’d suggest a name but I couldn’t even think of a name for myself most days.
WaterGirl
@Martin: I’m not sure Obama is a nipple twisting kind of guy. I see him as more of a FU kind of guy, myself. EIther way, it’s been a great week!
OT, I am wishing/hoping 2012 is a good year for you. It’s more than time for you to catch a break!
WaterGirl
@BGinCHI: Um, I’ll take the baby. Hold the black tar poop, please.
Jay in Oregon
@opie jeanne:
Why does no one mention what his business success entails? He and a bunch of rich buddies got even richer by buying companies, stripping them like a stolen car, firing everyone, and selling off the pieces. All while paying as little in taxes as they possibly can to support the people whose livelihoods they ruined.
That’s about as anti-American (yet “uniquely American”, and GWB once said) as I can think of.
Martin
Oh, on names, go with Bubba. Never too early to start managing expectations. Even if he grows up to be a meth abusing cab driver, people will still look at him and say “Damn, that Bubba really made something of himself.”
If you name him Stewart or something like that, even if he’s a junior vice president of Google or some damn thing like that, people will look at him and say, “Well, that Stewart has done okay for himself, but you’d think he could at least wash his car more often.”
They’d never say something like that about a Bubba.
Yutsano
@MikeJ: Actually, let them sue. Unless they can convince the court to grant an expedited hearing (and what reason exists for that?) then it’ll be tied up until well after the election or even 2013.
piratedan
@BGinCHI: just wait …. in a couple of weeks, it’ll have odor too!!!!!
Xenos
@BGinCHI:
Hear, hear, and congratulations, too! 2012 may be crazy, but there are always magnificent blessings to be noted.
Warren Terra
This isn’t entirely topical, but it does feature Romney, and there’s no late night open thread.
Seattle’s (and Dan Savage’s) Alternative Weekly (and I’d say best local paper) The Stranger sent a correspondent to watch the Iowa caucuses, and he wrote up a feature story that’s really just surprisingly good. Read the whole thing – but be warned that nothing in it will top the line that ends the two paragraphs I’m quoting for a taster:
amk
@Warren Terra: twitterdom
The last person to lose a presidential race to Barack Obama just endorsed the next person that will lose to President Obama
Raven
@BGinCHI: Yes!
SiubhanDuinne
@BGinCHI:
I was asleep by the time you posted, so am a few hours late in adding my congratulations to the chorus. That’s excellent news and I will look forward to seeing the photos early and often.
Curious, though: where did you find the name TBA? and how do you pronounce it?
noodler
@BGinCHI: Well done! Congratulations!
Johannes
@BGinCHI: Many, many congratulations, huzzahs, and a shabash! Now get some sleep…while you can :)
Cheryl from Maryland
@Whammer: Note Orin Hatch, former LDS Bishop and member of the Church, as Senator for Utah has FOR YEARS blocked the FDA for investigating the effectiveness and safety of this herbal vitamin quackery. Could it be because the quackery funds his church, because many of those industries are in Utah, and because they give him money?
Lojasmo
@BGinCHI:
Congratulations!
I named our son when my wife fell asleep. I thought we had agreed on a name, but when she awoke, she told me that was not so.
It stuck, though. Damn, I was tired.
Johannes
@BGinCHI: Is it too soon to suggest names? May I suggest Stormageddon, Dark Lord of All?
tofubo
A Wisconsin high school marching band in the Rose Parade stops in front of union-busting Governor Walker and serenades him with Woodie Guthrie’s “Union Maid.”
http://mohandasgandhi.tumblr.com/post/15395616302/moosedeevita-servile-masses-arise
Omnes Omnibus
@BGinCHI: Congrats! I hope all are doing well.
JPL
@BGinCHI: Congrats and please post the pictures.
kay
@Warren Terra:
He does. It was easy to pick up in the 2008 debates.
Romney is intimidated by McCain, too. The look on Romney’s face when McCain went after him on Iraq (unfairly, actually: McCain was lying) was just so fearful that it was what I now think of as classic Romney; a horrible mix of terror at being “found out” and humiliated along with huge self-regard. He’s going to be found out and humiliated and it isn’t fair that this is happening TO HIM.
At one point Romney looked to the other candidates during McCain’s lying, clenched teeth tirade as if he thought they were going to rescue him, but, you know, they hate him too so there was no help there!
South of I-10
@BGinCHI: Congratulations! Would love to see some pics.
Omnes Omnibus
@South of I-10:
@BGinCHI: Yeah, why aren’t there pictures yet? WTF? It’s not like you have anything more important to do than feed pics to jackals. Jeez.
South of I-10
@Omnes Omnibus: What’s more important, sending pics to people you don’t know on the Internet or caring for your newborn? Priorities people!
Omnes Omnibus
@South of I-10: Exactly, so the pics better show up soon. Amirite?
Cheryl from Maryland
@tofubo: That’s awesome. Woody Guthrie, still important and speaking for America after all these years. Pity the announcers were so clueless.
ET
And yet he blasts Obama as a “crony capitalist.”
Mitt is a joke.
South of I-10
@Omnes Omnibus: I am sure his wife wouldn’t mind taking care of the baby for an hour or so while he posts pics. She probably had a little cat nap after the whole labor and delivery thing.
kay
@BGinCHI:
Congrats!
You have a weird cycling mechanism in your head now, where you’re going to (mentally or physically) check in on the well being of that baby every 15 to 30 minutes for the rest of your life.
But you’ll be able to do other things along with doing that, after about a month. You won’t even notice it after a while!
Raven
Nice APP Permission Clean Up
gogol's wife
@BGinCHI:
Congratulations! I hope they’ll front-page the pictures.
Josie
@BGinCHI: Congratulations to you and the Mrs. I appreciate the respect you hold for your wife. My late husband used to say that any man who had been in the labor and delivery room would never argue with the mom on how to handle the children.
Insomniac
@BGinCHI: Congratulations! How wonderful is this! Well done you two!
Feudalism Now!
Congrats BGinChi and family! Discussions of baby diapers and Mittens go well together, since they usually contain the same thing.
JCT
@BGinCHI: I’m just tuning in but that is wonderful news — what a great size, you won’t feel like you’re going to break him. (Yes, that was my husband’s biggest worry with our first). Hope his mom is holding up OK, some process, huh?
Mazel Tov — it gets better every day. And if someone with a big, scruffy, somewhat sullen high school senior son can say that…
Don’t forget to turn around and check out your back seat after you get him loaded up, that’s an image that will stick!
El Cid
Maybe Romney doesn’t think he quite fits into “rich” yet; if he’s in the several hundred million dollar category, why, then, he’s only ‘upper middle class’ compared to his multi-billionaire friends.
Valdivia
@BGinCHI:
yay!! a boy. so excited for you. congrats!
Valdivia
@tofubo:
that was awesome! get these kids more views on youtube!
chopper
@BGinCHI:
congrats! i’d name him Hris, or Jah, or Harl, or jahob…
scav
TBAinCHI!
Hungry Joe
Name: Tunch.
You’re welcome.
oliver's Neck
@Yutsano: Yes, he’s clearly a member of the Mammon church.
Emma
@BGinCHI: Late to the party as usual, but WWWHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEE!
shortstop
Adding my congrats to the pile! I had to go to another thread and beg for BG baby news, which several juicers kindly provided.
Bijou
@BGinCHI: TBagg? TBogg? TBow? Sorry, and congratulations.