I would like to have a series of substantive discussions on ...

[lovemydog]

225. I agree with you on this.

Ideally, yes we would like to have no tax credits for any corporations. But there are certain tax credits that can serve the public interest and keep corporations from leaving the country, until that happens. I think it's important to examine what serves the public interest. Building infrastructure qualifies, imho. Also, I feel that complete tax breaks to big oil companies, where they pay zero in taxes, is regressive. I'm probably more incremental than many to my left here, but I feel this are complex problems and the best way is to address each of them individually.

For example. Where I live, we have some tax credits for the film and television industry. Progressives here have supported it because it has brought good paying jobs, and because it's a relatively green industry. Would I like to see a time when no industries get tax credits? Yes. But when someone criticizes it for 'letting big business off the hook for taxes' I remind them of a few things. Walmart pays no taxes in many locales here on the argument that it brings in jobs. Big oil companies, same thing. The movie industry is much more labor intensive than capital intensive. The republicans tend to oppose these tax credits because they probably know most in film & television tend to vote democratic party, and by being shrill about it they distract from the complete tax exemptions that they give to big oil.

I think a similar argument can be made for tax credits for building infrastructure. It's labor intensive. It serves a useful public interest of providing jobs here in the US. It serves a useful and much needed public interest of improving our roads. It provides incentives for companies to not ship their jobs overseas. Perhaps it can be phased out in a few years or so, once we get more international cooperation from allowing total tax havens for offshore corporate accounts.