EDITORIAL: Making Tax Day worse - Washington Times

EDITORIAL: Making Tax Day worse - Washington Times

Americans who thought Tax Day was bad this year could find it far worse next year. Tuesday happens to be Tax Freedom Day, the date by which taxpayers have earned enough to pay off Uncle Sam and start earning for themselves. This occasion will fall even later next year if President Obama succeeds in making the tax code more complicated and expensive.

Mr. Obama has invoked Warren Buffett’s name at 49 different events since mid-August to justify his tax-raising plans. Despite the all-out White House lobbying effort, the president’s allies in the Democratic Senate failed on Monday to get the votes needed to pass the 30 percent tax hike on income over $1 million. Mr. Obama knew this bill was a nonstarter, but doing something concrete about the debt was never his goal. He’s trying to paint Republicans as protectors of the wealthy.

Voters should instead pay attention to what will happen to their tax bill in a second term. At his annual press conference on the eve of Tax Day, Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist pointed out that the president’s budget creates an additional $6.7 trillion in debt over a decade. The Buffett tax only generates $47 billion over 10 years. “We don’t know exactly how he intends to pick our pockets, but he’s given us the number,” said Mr. Norquist. “He’s told us how much he’s taking from rich people. He needs to raise $6.653 trillion from middle-income Americans to pay for his bigger government.”