Senate Fiscal Cliff Bill Approved by House

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by adpimiz

However, our President can't simply spend and spend and spend.

As Vito pointed out, no, he can't. Congress, not the president, controls spending.

Originally Posted by adpimiz

Life isn't fair.

An interesting approach for arguing that taxes should be fair.

Anyway, life may indeed not be fair, but there can be consequences to taxing those with lower income to the point that they can't pay for essentials. That increases the chance that those people will need government assistance like food stamps, Medicaid, etc.

I think the tax system needs an overhaul, but I think simple answers are not likely to be effective ones. Everyone paying the same percentage may sound appealing on the surface, but if the effect of a system like that is to increase the burden on the government for social services, then is it really effective? Is it preferable to have structured rates that encourage more self-sufficiency for those with lower incomes?

[Psi U MC Vito]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

As Vito pointed out, no, he can't. Congress, not the president, controls spending.

Under every Congress there are stories of the President being forced to fund programs that he doesn't support. In some aspects I think this can be a good thing, within reason of course. I also support the concept of a line-item veto, which I think can do a lot to reduce the use of riders. *shrugs* I'm also possibly in a minority in thinking that we should transition to a parliamentary republic. (Actually I would even support a constitution monarchy on the slightly older British model.)