In last night's State-of-the-Union address, President Obama called for the repeal of tax breaks for outsourcing jobs.
FULL TEXT: State of the Union 2012
Right now, companies get tax breaks for moving jobs and profits overseas. Meanwhile, companies that choose to stay in America get hit with one of the highest tax rates in the world. It makes no sense, and everyone knows it.
So let’s change it. First, if you’re a business that wants to outsource jobs, you shouldn’t get a tax deduction for doing it. That money should be used to cover moving expenses for companies like Master Lock that decide to bring jobs home.
In 1961, JFK also called for a repeal of the same tax breaks.
Does tax code send U.S. jobs offshore?
The deferral clause has been in the tax code for more than half a century and has outlasted numerous reform efforts. In April 1961, even as U.S.-backed rebels were dying at Cuba's Bay of Pigs, President Kennedy asked Congress to rewrite tax provisions that "consistently favor United States private investment abroad compared with investment in our own economy."
Maybe this will be the year that those tax breaks will finally be repealed. Or maybe Presidents will still be calling for this repeal 50 years from now.
Also, in last night's State-of-the-Union address, President Obama noted the lack of belief in the ability of our government to get things done.
FULL TEXT: State of the Union 2012
I recognise that people watching tonight have differing views about taxes and debt; energy and health care. But no matter what party they belong to, I bet most Americans are thinking the same thing right now: Nothing will get done this year, or next year, or maybe even the year after that, because Washington is broken.
Can you blame them for feeling a little cynical?
To answer the President's question, "No, I don't blame them for being cynical." In fact, I consider myself to be of similar disposition, though I wouldn't call it cynicism, which implies a habitual attitude of distrust and negativity. I would call it a rational lack of belief that is shared even by those who generally have an optimistic nature.
I'm not criticizing the President, but rather, our overall government. Like repealing those tax breaks, there are many good ideas that are ready to be plucked and yet go unplucked year after year. In fact, representational democracy itself is one of those good ideas that has still yet to be realized. And until we realize that latter idea, I fear that all the other ideas will remain on the tree, tantalizing ripe, within reach, spotlighted within inspiring speeches, and yet still on the tree year after year after year ...
The rest of this diary provides more detail about this tax loophole.
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