C-Span - Pete Stark "slapping down" Reps for Estate Tax Repeal

[kerry-is-my-prez]

The House of Reps just passed it and now it's up to the Senate to stop the insanity.

[musette_sf]

1. Pete Stark, now that's a name that's been absent

from several important votes lately, if I am not mistaken.

Hey Pete, I voted for you... it's about time you started piping up again!

[kerry-is-my-prez]

2. Here's a good article about this...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A45305-2005Apr11.html

-snip-

With so many other taxes around, it's hard to understand why this is the one Congress would repeal. It falls, in effect, on the heirs to the wealthiest Americans. Fewer than 1 percent of the people who died in 2004 paid an estate tax, and half the revenue from the tax came from estates valued at $10 million or more.

Yet, because the wealthy have gotten wealthier over the past three decades or so, the estate tax produces a lot of money. Counting both revenue losses and added interest costs, complete repeal of the estate tax would cost the government close to $1 trillion between 2012 and 2021, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

-snip-

This is big news for the Social Security debate. Michael J. Graetz and Ian Shapiro, authors of a new book on the estate tax, "Death by a Thousand Cuts," have referred to its repeal as the "Paris Hilton Benefit Act." To pick up on the metaphor, why should Congress be more concerned about protecting Paris Hilton's inheritance than grandma's Social Security check? How can a member of Congress even think about raising payroll taxes while throwing away so much other revenue?

-snip-

[kerry-is-my-prez]

3. Now Jim McDermott is on a rampage

You gotta listen to this folks....

[AlCzervik]

4. watching now.

[spartan61]

5. For most of you, you should know about HR 8

which is expected to pass the House of Representatives this week and head to the Senate. (oops, just passed the House.)
The part you hear: HR8 repeals the Estate Tax, which on the surface sounds good.

The part you don't: HR8 will also repeal what's called "stepped-up basis", which means when your children inherit you're property, they will face enormous taxes if they sell it.

Example: You bought your house for $35,000, and it is worth $400,000 today. If both you and your spouse die today, the value of your house going to your children is $400,000 due to stepped-up basis. If HR8 passes and then passes the Senate, the house will go to your children at what you paid for it ($35,000), plus whatever you put into it to fix it up.

If your children sell the house the day you die, they owe the government approximately $54,700 in Capital Gains Tax.

Now let's look at the Estate Tax:

If the total of all of your assets is less than $1.5 million, and you die in 2005, the estate tax is $0. And all of your property gets reevaluated at the stepped-up basis.

About 90% of you should be upset by this. I strongly urge you to call your Senators and complain. You've worked hard for what you have. Don't let the government take it away from your family.

[kerry-is-my-prez]

6. Those poor rich people - my heart aches for them.....

:eyes:

These Repub Senators are so full of shit AND so is anybody else who falls for their b.s.

[AlCzervik]

7. Did you just hear Richard Neal of Mass going off?

he was great.

[Bluebear]

9. Is Katherine not wearing make-up anymore?

Boy, she goes from one extreme look to another!

[AlCzervik]

12. she looks like she's been using tan in a can or

she's spending a lot of time in the sun. she is the most ineffective speaker in that house.

[rodeodance]

11. Rep. Hathrine Harris is speaking in FAVOR (no surprize)

[ellenfl]

14. GO, JOHN TANNER!!

he's givin' 'em h*ll now. he says he originally sponsored this bill way back when but will not vote for it now. you go, boy!

ellen fl

[kerry-is-my-prez]

8. GAG! Now Katherine Harris is whining about it....

:argh:

[davidinalameda]

10. he's my rep

[rodeodance]

13. is this an amendent added to the budget bill -or a separate Bill?

[kerry-is-my-prez]

15. I think it is a seperate bill

n/t

[davidinalameda]

18. I'm pretty sure it is

[pscot]

16. The Paris Hilton income protection act

If Repukes don't end up wearing this in 2006 we don't deserve to win elections.

[dweller]

17. it has already passed?

i'm still listening to the debate on cspan, HR 8.

Pomeroy (ND) just came up...now yielded the floor to someone else...calling it a tax increase on 1000's of families....first proposed by T Roosevelt R...and passing the bill makes small bus/families pay more taxes.

it's only protecting .3% of the most wealthy...

dp