Bush Tax Cuts: Small Business Owners Not Worried About Expiration Of Tax Cuts For The Rich

latimes.com:

But President Obama and most Democrats contend that small-business owners would not be affected much because only about 3% of them earn more than $250,000 a year. Democratic leaders agree with Republicans that those earning less should get a permanent tax break.

Rick Poore helps make their case. The owner of a Lincoln, Neb., clothing firm that employs about 30 people, Poore supports letting the top-level tax rates go up. The reason is simple: He won't be affected. Poore, 56, and his wife clear about $140,000 a year from the business.

"The only people I can think of who can honestly call themselves small businesses that this would effect would be stockbrokers and lawyers," Poore said. "And I don't have a lot of sympathy for either of them."

Read the whole story: latimes.com

Comments

[notright guy]

03:18 PM on 12/02/2010

Tax the churches

[truthisneeded]

08:00 PM on 12/06/2010

agreed since they are political machines

[Chicagowill]

03:10 PM on 11/25/2010

I am reminded of a WSJ article I read after Joe the Plumber told Obama that he would be affected by Obama's plans to let tax cuts expire on people earning over $250,000. "Joe the Plumber doesn't need a new president. He needs a new accountant." I have read a lot of sense in these threads about investing as a way to lower profits and, therefore, taxes.
Why are companies hoarding money? From the small business owners I speak to, it's because they believe that when they need the money, their bank won't lend.

[Glenda Sitnek]

12:39 PM on 11/24/2010

I've enjoyed this lively discussion, however, that really is all it is. We've just witnessed the strangest, most ill-informed and unbelievably financed mid-term of our lifetimes and what did we see in the process? When the American people consider, much less vote, for Allen Green, Sharon Angle, Christine O'Donnell, Rand Paul, Joe Miller, Billy Long and the like, it is truly a picture of the uninformed, poorly educated, and completely inconsiderate of the needs of a country and its people, which is not pretty. If you look at the people influencing our country's politics such as Sarah Palin, Karl Rove, Mike Huckabee, Newt Gringrich, and the coverage the MSM gives them, why do we think anyone is getting information they can really use? If you read any foreign press during and after this election, you would find the rest of the world cannot really believe what's happening here, in fact that's the question; "What's Happening to the American People?" I don't have an answer.

[Binckeslaw]

07:48 AM on 11/24/2010

If the Bush tax cuts for family AGI income over $250k have created so many additional jobs why is the debate limited to merely extending them? Maybe income in excess of $250k should be free from tax altogether. Imagine how many new jobs Americans would have to choose from!

[Chip W]

08:01 AM on 11/24/2010

I think we should use tax revenue to subsidize them.

[sueinmn]

06:11 PM on 11/23/2010

The GOP always use the small business as an excuse when they know full well, it will not effect them. They also know if they blatantly protect only the higher business (wealthy) the public will denounce this. So why is it so difficult to just let these tax cuts expire. Dont let the political blackmail continue. We need to get tough on the GOP or they will continue to run all over us and baffle the masses. They are excellent liars with many years of practice!

[seeksthetruth]

04:29 PM on 11/23/2010

The GOP has never cared about small business or the working class. They only care about big business and the uber-wealthy. They merely invoke small business as yet another ruse to convince people to vote against their own interests.

[Kat Posing]

03:04 PM on 11/23/2010

Here's a brand new flavor for your ear. Taxes, not tax cuts, actually stimulate the economy and unemployment. Think about it. During the times when we had the highes taxation, we had relatively low unemployment and our economy was booming. Also, the American infrastructure was booming. Why? Well, lets think about it. What do taxes pay for?

*Schools, which employ school teachers. The more teachers, smaller classrooms, better one on one time with the kids, the better the child learns. They also pay for librarian, equiptment and book and schools.

* Transportation - roads projects, bridges, dams, trains and rail systems. Economy of scales - More public transportation projects means better environment because fewer cars on the roads. More people who use it means it gets cheaper to use.

And building these things requires manpower, which equates jobs.

Now, how much would you be willing to pay to have your child get more individual attention from his/her teacher, or to fix that pothole that took out your left front tire and rim, or to reduce your commute to/from work down to 30 minutes from 2 hours, and at a fraction of the cost? To have a clean beach, an open park, working streetlights? To know that the money you pay in taxes each month has employed a number of people who directly/indirectly and positively effect you life?

[stealur]

05:06 PM on 11/23/2010

More importantly, high taxes cause business owners to reinvest in their businesses, which lessens their tax burden. Basically, if you want small businesses to hire, tax them more. They can either pay higher taxes, or hire somebody to keep their rate lower.

[Chip W]

08:10 AM on 11/24/2010

I've thought that too, It seems to make sense, and it doesn't get mentioned as a counter argument to: Taxes will stifle small business.
Rather than take money as income and pay taxes on it, leave it in the business, maybe getting a tax deduction on it.

[MiBFTo]

02:57 PM on 11/23/2010

Did that guy really just compare PAYING TAXES to having CANCER?

Seriously?

[BlueSkyPilot]

02:49 PM on 11/23/2010

We all need to incorporate as LLC's.

Limited Liability Citizens.

Then we can get away without paying taxes or being held responsible for anything we do.
You can't sentence a corporation to death. you can't put a corporation in jail. And there are tax advantages that living persons can't get. They will even pay you to move out of the country and still retain all of your rights and privileges as guaranteed by the constitution.

[BlueSkyPilot]

02:47 PM on 11/23/2010

There needs to be a definition of just what a "Small Business" is. Is a multibillion hedge fund controlled by 1 person as much a "Small Business" as Larry's Lawn Care?

[Glenda Sitnek]

12:20 PM on 11/24/2010

It doesn't seem to matter how many times it is pointed out that the small businesses the Repubs are talking about are simply not the Larry's Lawn Care type. The media does publish articles, in fact many, on this distinction and also on the fact that no jobs were created because of the last tax cut to the wealthy, but people either don't get it, don't want to get it or the Repubs horn blasting falsifications are just louder than more reasonable voices. I'm completely baffled that it seems no matter how many times the American people are told, warned, informed that this party is lying, the masses just don't get it. 11/2 was proof that they completely ignored who put this country in the mess it is currently in (although through the Dems and Obama's efforts, slowly (and probably begrudingly) we are seeing a slight turnaround yet it is simply not being absorbed even though the media is now acknowledging that fact.

[BlueSkyPilot]

02:55 PM on 11/24/2010

11/2 was the result of the too many people that wanted to send a message by staying home.
Maybe they will wake up and smell the coffee before 2012 but I highly doubt it.

[AyeChart]

02:02 PM on 11/23/2010

Not worried about expiration?  Then why aren't they hiring and growing their businesses?  Why hoarding money for a rainy day?  Huh?

Other Than That, the Story Was Accurate
"My column on Tuesday incorrectly described the situation of the small group of Americans earning $50 million or more annually. Their incomes declined by 7.7 percent between 2008 and 2009; they did not quintuple. The incorrect information came from a report based on flawed Social Security Administration data. An inspector general is investigating after two individuals filed false W-2 forms that led to the skewed data."--Bob Herbert, New York Times, Nov. 6

Don't buy the propaganda put out by the left wing, folks.  They are lying to us.

[Chip W]

08:25 AM on 11/24/2010

Then why aren't they hiring and growing their businesses?
The only answer to that is they're worried about the tax cuts expiring?
94% of small businesses file individual tax forms.
97% of these would be unaffected by letting the tax cuts expire.

The article quote has nothing to do with tax cut expiration.

Funny how the left thinks the right lies; the right thinks the left lies. I'm not solidly on the left, but I've been seeing almost nothing but dishonesty from the right.

[sc300nc]

01:47 PM on 11/23/2010

Well if Mr. Poore from small town Nebraska says it, it MUST be true.

[stealur]

05:04 PM on 11/23/2010

Glad you agree.

[jwoww]

01:44 PM on 11/23/2010

$250K in Nebraska is a lot different than $250K in the major metro areas - ask small business owners in those area what they think and how far that gets you between property values, local taxes, state taxes,
and now the new fed taxes.

[AishaK]

01:44 PM on 11/23/2010

Am I missing something here? I have a small business and my taxable income is the amount left after expenses, inventory costs, payroll costs, etc. I invest more into my company to reduce the taxable income. I happen to believe that lower tax rates drive people to not invest in their businesses or hire additional staff. With a higher rate, they would be more compelled to invest in the business thereby reducing their taxable income.

[Debbie McPherson]

02:31 PM on 11/23/2010

Aishak
 
Great Post coming from an actual business owner instead of the GOP lie mill.
 
F & F
 
It's the Congress Multi-Millionaires Club that really want the cuts for themselves - over 260 members are multi milllionaires and they increased their wealth by 16% in the past 2 years - you can be sure earning through your elected position(bribes) is recession proof!!
 
Congress wants this break for themselves more than anyhting else - oh, and their friendly Hedge Fund Managers earning billions want it too.
 
Congress is more than  happy to manufacturer a popular lie to get their way - even with NO evidence to support it. So they go on saying they want the Bush tax breaks for the rich because it'll create jobs - even though the facts are it never did and never will.
 
The US CONGRESS - with a group of self serving elected officials who needs enemies for the country???

[Kat Posing]

03:38 PM on 11/23/2010

Darn! My post to you didn't go though. I'm bummed, but you've been Fanned & Fav'd for common sense!

But to repeat, for the non-accountants out there:

Revenue - Cost of Goods sold = Gross Profit
Gross Profit - Operating Expenses = Income before Taxes (or Earnings Before Interest and taxes)

Where Operating Expenses = Wages, rents, mortgages, payment on equiptment, equiptment, healthcare expenses...

So, the more you put into your business when taxes are high, the less tax expense you incur.

Another point the GOP doesn't like to communicate is that if a business is operating at capacity, it won't matter if you lower the tax rate, because they will have even less desire to hire or make business purchases because they don't need it and there's financial incentive to do. It won't improve their bottom line.

In fact, it incentivies businesses to lay off people and try to do more with less, because they can make a bigger profit if they can reduce their wage expense. This is why outsourcing has become a systemic problem. Between this and subsidies for offshoring work, it's no wonder we are suffering from the current rate of unemployment. And if this type of policy continues, we will begin to see even higher rates of unemployment.

[TheRevV]

12:07 PM on 11/23/2010

Yet repubs have been saying over and over resoring taxes for the rich would hurt small businesses.
Another Repub talking point debunked. Not that it matters, because they'll keep repeating it until their minions believe it and elect to make the wealthy wealthier while hamstringing themselves by swallowing Repub talking points about cutting infrastructure and social services.

[PEM1019]

02:35 PM on 11/23/2010

Fanned TheRev.. Everything you said is correct and while I read it, I feel sick to my stomach. It seems the rethugs are successfully getting their lies across and people are simply not understanding the real truth of the rethugs strategy and goals...which is NOT in the best interest of the American middle class. Reagans rickle down economics has not worked and the middle class and poor are getting pounded again...even voting in the people who will do the pounding. Sad.

[TheRevV]

03:10 PM on 11/23/2010

Remember: they are still a minority. Just a loud, agitated one working with rich backers and a complicit corporate-backed MSM.

The only hope is in mass protest.

[Glenda Sitnek]

12:29 PM on 11/24/2010

Not only will their minions believe it, a large majority (if you just look backward to 11/2) of the masses will also believe it. One think Karl Rove taught his party when he wanted to get Bush elected was that it really doesn't matter whether its true or not, what matters is how often you say it and where. The Repubs learned this lesson well.

[TheRevV]

12:48 PM on 11/24/2010

Yep... the old "repeat the lie long enough" dirty tactic works. Especially with a complicit media.

And everyone loses, because once enough people buy the l!e and vote that way, nothing is left but vanishing smoke. The f00ls who bought the lie just have empty air to grasp as their reward.