Mitch Ohnstad: “Why do you rob banks?”
Willie Sutton: “Because that’s where the money is.”
After the Republicans last night voted to gut the law allowing you to sue the banks and the credit card companies (yes, pedants you technically can still sue, but what individual can take on Wells Fargo without a class action suit?), I am absolutely convinced this will happen:
Republican tax writers on Capitol Hill are still considering changes to 401(k) retirement savings programs, downplaying President Donald Trump’s repeated pledges not to touch retirement accounts popular with middle-class Americans in the GOP tax overhaul.
At a breakfast with reporters this morning, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas, said tweaks to the current system are possible in the tax plan, which Republicans are expected to release on as early as Nov. 1.
“We want more Americans to save more. We want them to save earlier in their lives,” Brady said, adding that congressional Republicans are “exploring a number of ideas” and share the same goal as Trump.
And why are they considering these changes? Because that’s where the fucking money is:
About 55 million Americans save in 401(k) plans, which hold more than $5 trillion in assets, according to the Investment Company Institute.
Americans are wedded to the idea of receiving tax deferrals when they save for retirement, with the ICI finding that 93 percent of workers with either a 401(k) or an IRA were against removing tax incentives. A majority also opposed reducing contribution limits.
In the meantime, the total amount Americans have saved to fund their retirement falls short of what they need by as much as $14 trillion, depending on how one runs the numbers. (By comparison, total U.S. GDP is roughly $18 trillion.) More than one-quarter of working Americans have no retirement savings or pension, according to a Federal Reserve study published earlier this year.
And they’ll get the changes they want. And then they’ll give it to the rich in the form of tax cuts. While their wall street buddies whittle away at that 5 trillion with fees and charges.And they’ll call it fiscally conservative. And praise deregulation. And limit your right to sue. And our press will let them because they are too busy chasing Clinton’s skirt.
They’ll get it all because our democracy has failed, our electorate is stupid, our politicians are evil, and our media is worthless.
They’re Still Coming for Your RetirementPost + Comments (215)