Welcome to objectivist1, but that video is the same one posted on the Tax Policy thread last week. I would rather hear him tell the virtues of his plan than to tell me I have Stockholm Syndrome. The Fair Tax is not on the ballot. It may sell books for the author but this kind of divisive talk doesn't help bring real tax reform in my humble opinion. Besides that everyone else is a prisoner and a fool, he might consider that his own plan has real world flaws.
His plan has a 30% sales tax in it (they call it 23% of a number that is increased by 30%) including taxing government purchases which raises no real money and taxing new homes - grow the economy by killing off our most depressed industry? Make those two exceptions and the rate goes far above 30%. Even then, revenue neutral plans raise only 60% of current spending before the economic growth kicks in.
The Pre-Bate actually does kill the simplicity and denying by name calling doesn't answer the objection. How do we know their income without forms like we have now to calculate it? The ones needing pre-bates are the people who tend not to manage money well. Cain addresses it far better with no prebate instead saying they can buy used.
The Fair tax requires the REPEAL of the income tax amendment which is a complete political impossibility. Most polls say people want higher income taxes on the rich. How many say they want zero - close to zero. It is certainly less than the roughly 75% required to amend the constitution. Implement it without repeal and you give liberals all the tools they need to make things far worse than before in their next retake of power.
47 states plus some localities have an income tax and the first line in it says send in your federal return with all its schedules. States and localities would rely even more on the income tax, not less, if their current sales tax was on top of a 30% federal rate.
The Fair tax involves radical change without a plan for a smooth transition that I know of. If you want to end all income taxation and go to all consumption-based taxes, my suggestion is: cut spending first!
Boortz' proposal died IMO because it was unworkable not because fellow conservatives have Stockholm Syndrome. The Cain plan is on the table now and the election starts in less than 2 months. My suggestion is for the more conservative candidates to find some kind of consensus on policies soon or get ready for another 4 years of moving toward total central control of our economy.
