Chairman’s Report - April 20, 2018

CHAIRMAN BRADY PUTTING LIPSTICK ON A PIG

In USA Today, Ways And Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady published an op-ed where he boasted that the recently enacted tax plan said “…good riddance to that outdated monstrosity of a tax code that took too much of your money, sent our American jobs overseas, and kept our economy so slow many workers didn’t see a pay raise for a decade or more.”

Chairman Brady, a co-sponsor of the FAIRtax until he became Chairman of the Ways And Means Committee, is not wrong that some of the recent changes to the income tax laws are going to help Americans.  Just like the pig with lipstick and a bath is going to look much better than its unwashed fellow pigs, but it is still a pig.

Brady asserted:

• …individuals and married couples will keep more of their hard-earned money and take home a bigger paycheck.
• a child tax credit that will double from $1,000 to $2,000 for each child when they file in 2019.
• More than 400 companies — and counting — have announced pay raises, bonuses and investments in their workers and businesses.
• Wages are growing and unemployment is low — with U.S. jobless claims at their lowest level since 1973.
• ...we now have lower tax rates for local businesses — including a first-ever small business deduction to protect 20% of their income from taxes.

What Brady knew but didn’t say:

• Americans still have to file individual and corporate income tax returns.
• Americans are still required to spend money in ways dictated by Congress and the Swamp if they want to be able to reduce their income taxes;
• The collapsing Social Security/Medicare system is not addressed.
• Americans are still subject to withholding and do not receive their entire paycheck.
• The income tax code is now even more complicated after “reform”.
• Corporations who benefit from lowering the corporate tax rate to 20% would benefit much more by a zero percent rate.
• There is still the IRS.
• Congress and the Swamp will continue to make huge amounts of money from groups seeking to either obtain or keep tax benefits, all the while ignoring the needs of the rest of Americans.
• Americans will still spend millions of hours trying to comply with the income tax code.
• Evasion of the income tax is being ignored and will only worsen.
• American made products are still penalized when compared to the products of all of our trading partners and this costs us jobs and wealth and this is why there is talk of tariffs.

Conclusion

Kevin Brady and his fellow Members of Congress should remember the statement made by Abraham Lincoln after listening to a speaker advancing the argument that slavery was actually good for the slave.  “How many legs does a dog have if you call his tail a leg? Four. Saying that a tail is a leg doesn't make it a leg.

Yes, Chairman Brady, the lipstick does make the pig more attractive and it smells better but it is still a pig.  However, all of the “benefits” of the new tax bill are more easily obtained by passing the FAIRtax.

The FAIRtax will:

• Give all Americans their entire paycheck.
• Reduce the cost of American produced goods by at least 10%.
• Totally exempt from tax all new retail goods and retail services purchased up to the poverty level for a family.
• Eliminate the filing of tax returns for individuals and eliminate most of the filing of tax returns for businesses.
• Make American products more competitive and no longer encourage imports which cost American jobs.
• Eliminate the IRS.
• Disclose the true cost of funding the U.S. government to all Americans.
• Force Congress to fund benefits for groups of citizens directly through legislation and not hidden in the income tax.

The truth is the truth.  Remember, if we don't continue to tell the truth and demand a change, then this quote from George Orwell's 1984 may foretell our children's future:

“If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever.”

WHAT CAN EACH OF US DO

Call up the local or D.C. offices of your House Member and two Senators and you can use the following script:

• I am sure that Representative ____ or Senator ____ is in favor of everyone obeying the income tax laws.
• After they assure you that their boss is not in favor of anyone breaking the law, ask if they are aware of the Cebula study showing $9 trillion of evaded income/payroll taxes over the next ten years.
• Since most will say they don’t believe their boss has seen the study, either drop off a copy or get an email address and send a copy to them for their boss.
• Say you are going to call back in a week and ask what the Representative or Senator is going to do to stop this evasion.
• In a week, call back and ask specifically what the Representative or Senator is going to do to enforce the law.
• They probably will say their boss believes that simplifying the income tax will handle the problem.
• Explain that when people evade income taxes, they are also evading the 15.3% payroll/Medicare tax and state income tax.  So it is unlikely that they are going to pay 30% or 40% when they were paying 0% because they have already decided it is okay to cheat.
• Say that the only way to reduce evasion is to increase by tens or hundreds of thousands the number of comprehensive IRS audits done each year.
• Point out that Evaders do not self-identify by putting an “E” on their income tax return.
• 80% of the people likely to be audited are trying to comply, but they will be forced to endure these IRS audits as well.
• Ask if the Member is in favor of this?
• If they say no, then ask again how the Member proposes to stop people breaking the income tax laws.
• Then explain that the way to handle evasion without unleashing the IRS audits is the FAIRtax.  

If you can see your Member or attend a town hall and ask these questions, you can be even more effective.
 

FAIRTAX POWER RADIO #104

50 WAYS TO LOVE THE FAIRTAX

When someone asks you “What’s so great about the FAIRtax?” what do you tell them?  Gets rid of the IRS?  No more tax returns?  Boosts the economy?  Actually, there is a huge list of advantages of the FAIRtax ranging from economic issues to foreign trade to the underlying concepts of the Declaration of Independence and our Constitution.  And the FAIRtax Guys use this episode to list and discuss many of them. Listen to this episode and see if you can think of more.  After all, the FAIRtax is the only REAL tax reform proposal in Congress, and since it is unique, some people may identify even more ways to love the FAIRtax. 

NIGHTMARE ON EVERY STREET

Last week was Friday the 13th. And now the tax filing deadline has past.  But still, you might ask, “Do you know where your tax return is?” Specifically, do you know where all your personal, private information is?  Yeah, it’s on that tax return!  Is it safe?  Thousands of people fall victim to identity theft every year because of their income tax returns. The FAIRtax Guys reviewed the gruesome story of the worst possible tax system that could ever be devised and how it ruins thousands of legal tax payers every year.  ID theft via the income tax is a real nightmare.  Just one more reason to pass the FAIRtax and return sanity to federal taxation.  Get the gory details from The FAIRtax Guys.

PLEASE HELP US SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT THE FAIRTAX?  

Telling your friends and relatives about our free weekly podcasts is a great way to help us garner more support.  It is the American people who must demand REAL tax reform in Congress.  We must inform America about the FAIRtax!  Please help us.  

Telling your friends and relatives about our free weekly podcasts is a great way to help us garner more support.  It is the American people who must demand REAL tax reform in Congress.  We must inform America about the FAIRtax!  Please help us.

You can listen to FTPR on any platform - Mac or PC, iPhone or Android. And it’s 100% free. 

Listen on Spreaker.com (http://bit.ly/2oesbk7), iTunes (http://apple.co/1Te8VdF) or iHeart Radio (http://bit.ly/2eqEG7y) on your computer or smartphone.  The easiest way to listen to FTPR on your smartphone is by downloading the free FTPR app.  Just search for “FAIRtax Power Radio” in your app store, download the app and start listening.  

We post a new episode every Friday morning.  Please listen and tell everyone you know about the FAIRtax Power Radio.  

The FAIRtax: Once You Understand It, You’ll Demand It!

THE ELECTRONIC INTRODUCTION TO THE FAIRTAX - AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION

America’s Big Solution is a basic introduction to the FAIRtax and is meant for people of any age.  And you can download it to your tablet or smartphone right now.

Do you know someone who would like an introduction to the FAIRtax and would prefer to read about it rather than search online for Tweets, Posts and Shares?  If so, America’s Big Solution is their best choice.

America’s Big Solution is an introduction to the FAIRtax written by Terry Tibbetts, author of A Spartan Game: The Life and Loss of Don Holleder, with help from Ron Maiellaro, President of the Florida FAIRtax Educational Association.  

You can buy an electronic version of ABS as follows:  AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION is available for only $2.99 for the Amazon Kindle (http://amzn.to/1WIRHry), the Barnes & Noble Nook (http://bit.ly/1XeG8bH) and Apple iOS (http://apple.co/1tnqK0P).  

You can purchase a print copy at the same Amazon link above for $9.25.  Regardless of whether you choose the electronic format or the print format, you’ll find AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION will give someone the boost they need to begin their study of the FAIRtax and the suggested resources to learn more. Buy AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION now!

LINKS TO MORE INFORMATION

These links will help you promote and support the FAIRtax, make yourself familiar with the links below. We always do our best to keep our AFFT community up to date, and you can stay ahead of the curve using these convenient sites.

• The website of Americans for Fair Taxation (www.fairtax.org)
• Read the Summary of the Evasion Study. 
• Welcome to the Online FAIRtax Community  (member.fairtax.org) 
• The website at which you can help make it happen. (www.bigsolution.org)
• The Facebook page for Americans for Fair Taxation 
• The Facebook page for The FAIRtax Guys 
• The Twitter page for Americans for Fair Taxation 
• PopVox - Connecting people and lawmakers for more effective participation and better governing 
• YouTube channel for AFFT 
• The Official FAIRtax Logo Store (www.fairtaxlogostore.org)

                          
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