Warren Buffett Says Rich Americans Should Pay Higher Taxes

Ya don't say???

http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/58129-buffett-to-meet-with-senate-dems

Excerpt:


Buffett tells Dems rich need to pay more
By Alexander Bolton - 09/10/09 05:40 PM ET

Warren Buffett, the renowned investor and the world’s second richest man, told Senate Democrats that wealthy Americans need to pay higher taxes, giving Democrats something to mull as they address healthcare reform and soaring federal deficits.

Senate Democrats met with Buffett for more than an hour over lunch Thursday, peppering him with questions about the economy, said lawmakers in attendance.

“He said rich people are not paying enough taxes,” said Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.). “It was interesting to see someone who is such an aggressive capitalist, who believes so much in our capitalist system, saying we’ve got the scales way too heavily toward people who are very, very wealthy.”

Buffett told lawmakers that because of the cuts to the capital gains tax passed under former President George W. Bush, he pays taxes at a lower rate than some of his company’s employees.

It is an argument the investor has made before. Buffett said he paid a 16.5 percent tax rate on all his income because the tax rate on investment dividends and long-term capital gains is only 15 percent.

By contrast, a single employee at Buffet’s firm, Berkshire Hathaway, who earns between $33,000 and $83,000 must pay a 25 percent federal income tax rate.
 
Our tax system is so upside down its a crime.Just like the example Buffet gave he pays lower % than his employees even though he makes 100s even 1000s of times what they do.Ability to pay is the criteria we should be operating under and that would mean people like Buffet (and he agrees) should be paying much more than they do.
 
The wealthy do pay more in taxes, it's just lower percent than everyone else's. And that is where the problem lies. The percentage is the problem, not how much someone pays.
 
It's not an easy problem to address. Take the long term dividends and capital gains rate of 15%. Yes it affects the super rich like Buffett but it also affects little putzes like me. The dropping of the rate to 15% saves me about $800-900 per year. That savings is more significant to me than whatever Buffet's savings are to himself.
 
Lovely sentiments: anybody going to enforce this?? Never. Keep bailing out the bailouts. :rolleyes:
 
Define "rich." Then we'll talk.

Buffett is "rich". He can afford it. I can't.
 
Well in the UK we all pay much higher taxes than in the US rich or poor!
 

Facetious

Moderated
This Buffet guy kills me whenever he's being interviewed by Whatsherface on CNBC.

So, Mr Buffet, what does the future look like ?
Buffett : :1orglaugh Horrible ! :D Just Gawd Awful !! :rofl: it's not looking good at all :laugh:

I ask :What the hell is there to be so jovial about Mr Buffet ?





Buffet, as I recall is one of the founders of the business practice called "offshoring" or "outsourcing", you see, he's a real stingy greedy wealth hoarding megalomaniac and if you look at the firms included in his Berk. Hath stock portfolio, you will notice that the firms in his collection have very little in the form of labor costs associated with their operation and it's not by accident or chance that they worked out that way... Warren Buffet is no friend to labor.

Buffet is making his money off of the backs of people in foreign countries and Warren Buffet is making money from doing nothing more than pushing paper and making ''deals''. The guy really doesn't produce wealth or income for a whole hell of a lot of people...... except for :drum roll please:

:bowdown: Himself :bowdown:​
 
That means I'm in the clear!!! :thumbsup:
 
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