Paul Volcker: Yeah, We're Going To Need New Taxes

Color me shocked.

Acknowledging it would be a highly unpopular move, White House economic adviser Paul Volcker said yesterday the United States should consider imposing a "value added tax" similar to those charged in Europe to help get the deficit under control.

A VAT is a national sales tax that, like state and city sales taxes, would be collected by retailers.

Volcker, at the New-York Historical Society, told a panel on the global financial crisis that Congress might also have to consider new taxes on carbon and energy.

Who is Paul Volcker you might ask.

Well, he was appointed head of the Federal Reserve by Jimmy Carter (and reappointed once by Reagan before being ditched for Alan Greenspan). More to the point, he's the head of Obama's tax policy commission.

It's all coming. And you know what? It was part of the plan. You simply can't spend all of this money when you are already so far in debt and not have Democrats start clamoring for more taxes. Like the proverbial scorpion, it's who they are.

The worst part of it is, it won't work. As we all know, taxing your way to prosperity is simply a fairy tale Democrats tell their kids and their base to make them feel better yet it only destroys growth and actual prosperity.

Assuming the Republicans have control of at least one house of Congress when the bill comes do at the start of next year, what are they going to do? Become the tax collectors for Obama's euro style social-democracy or take a knife to the budget? And by 'knife' I mean 'nuclear powered jackhammer'.

Cute little trap The Won has set.

posted by DrewM. at 02:19 PM

| Access Comments