The Intended Purpose of the Republican Party Tax Cuts: Fueling Income and Wealth Inequality

The United States Federal Reserve Bank issued a report in September 2017 showing the top 1 percent of US income earners own almost twice as much wealth as the bottom 90 percent of Americans.

According to the Fed’s report, the bottom 90 percent of citizens have seen their wealth fall from nearly 38 percent of total US wealth in 1989 to 23 percent today, a 40 percent drop. Meanwhile, the 1 percent has seen their share of wealth grow from just under 30 percent in 1989 to 38.6 percent today.

In the same report, Federal Reserve researchers reported the rich took a record-high 23.8 percent of the overall US created income in 2016, up from approximately 8 percent in 1980. The report showed the bottom 90 percent of families now make less than half of the country’s income. That figure slipped to 49.7 percent in 2016, down by more than 20 percent since 1989.

A perusal of the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) shows total US corporate profits hit their highest level ever in the third quarter of 2017. The next three highest were during the three quarters preceding the third quarter. Corporate after-tax earnings were also at their highest levels during the past four quarters. This shows US corporations are doing fine without the tax cuts.

According to the BEA, despite record aggregate corporate earnings in 2017, average monthly job growth was lower than in 2016. Rather than increasing jobs, much of those record earnings are providing higher dividends and share buybacks. Both of these are done with the intention of raising share prices, thereby fueling an already dangerous stock market bubble.

There is a good chance that much of the corporate tax cuts will be used to increase dividends and find ways to increase share values, which redounds mainly to the rich.

In a research report for the National Bureau of Economic Research, economist Edward N. Wolff shows that the top 1 percent own 40 percent of all corporate shares, while the 90-99 percent own 44 percent, as of 2016. That means the top ten percent will be the primary beneficiaries of the new tax cuts for corporations, increasing both their income and their wealth relative to everybody else.

Thus, income and wealth inequalities are certain to increase under the newest Republican tax cuts. People may reasonably suspect the tax cuts were written to ensure this result, and with potentially dire results.

The stock market bubble may grow bigger than would otherwise be the case in the absence of the tax cuts. Once the bubble bursts, the 99 percent will likely be the principal victims in the form of higher unemployment, reduced incomes, home foreclosures, increased homelessness, and all the things that historically come with the bursting of stock market bubbles.

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Stephen Colbert to Pope Francis: We can’t fix wealth inequality until we get money out of politics

There’s a reason the United States is one of the most politically corrupt nations in the world. Stephan Colbert hits the head on the nail with his succinct analysis that wealth inequality will continue to grow in the United States so long as money in politics are at record levels.

The corruption, especially of the federal government, which is massive compared to the years from 1933 to 1980, began when President Ronald Reagan signed into law tax cuts for the rich. Supposedly, this trickle down economics, which had already been a complete failure during the first thirty years of the 1900s, was going to create jobs. Instead, the rich used their new found financial muscle to destroy jobs by pushing legislators for international income redistribution agreements, commonly marketed by those who benefited from these income redistribution scams as “free trade agreements.”

The result has been a progressively weaker US economy as tens of millions of jobs have been shipped overseas, thanks to these agreements. When a job is shipped overseas, the difference between the old, higher, US wages and the new, super low third world wages goes straight into the already fat wallets of the super rich via higher corporate earnings, rising dividends, and soaring share prices. The job losers get a few unemployment checks, if they’re lucky, and maybe a lower paying job, if they’re even luckier.

The proceeds of these treaties find their way into the campaign contributions and pockets of US politicians. And the cycle plays over and over again. More and more income redistributed via legislation from the 99 to the 1 percent, so that nowadays the rich and their legislative henchmen steal 37 percent of all income in the USA, compared to 8 percent before the Reagan tax cuts.

There are several other ways legislators help the super rich to steal from everybody else, such as passing legislation to privatize government services, force school districts to add more and more testing, and numerous other things.

Colbert is completely correct, except for one thing. Nothing will change unless a massive grassroots political movements overwhelms the money in politics, and then the money is taken out of politics. Go Bernie Sanders!

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ALERT!!! Wall Street House Republicans Revive the Income Redistribution Scam Known As Fast Track Authority

This morning, Wall Street Congressman John Boehner introduced Fast Track Authority into the US House of Representatives, which passed 218-208. 190 Republicans and 28 Democrats voted for this scam; 50 Republicans and 158 Democrats voted against it. Eight members did not vote.

Now the measure will return to the US senate as a stand alone piece of legislation, where Wall Street Senator Ron Wyden is chomping at the bit to vote for it on behalf of Wall Street billionaires, and against the interests and wishes of the vast majority of Oregonians, which he was elected to represent.

Fast Track Authority will allow for the passage of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the largest income and political power redistribution scam in world history. Previously, Fast Track had to pass with the Trade Adjustment Assistance Act (TAA), which was geared to help the hundreds of thousands of workers, and perhaps millions, whose jobs will be exported with TPP.

We know from leaked documents the TPP will:

* give incentives for US corporations to export millions of US jobs. The Federal Reserve estimates that 28 million US jobs were exported between 1990 and 2010. Wyden wants to increase this number. Jobs are the biggest US export product. Wyden likes this.

* will increase US income and wealth inequality. The 1 percent have already taken 95 percent of all income growth in the United States since 2009. Currently, the 1 percent are stealing 36+ percent of all income produced in the USA, compared to only 8 percent in 1980. International trade scams and other federal legislation have brought inequality about. For example, when the above jobs were exported, the difference between the old higher US wages and the new lower wages will go straight into the pockets of the 1 percent via higher corporate profits, rising dividends and surging share prices. Wyden is a principle architect of this inequality.

* Those lost jobs will no longer be paying the taxes for our infrastructure, K-12 education, higher education (tuition and fees will go up), social safety nets, schools, fire, police, public transportation, social security taxes, but those lost jobs will push the stock markets higher.

* will effectively eliminate your voting rights on local and state issues since it will unconstitutionally grant investors of the 0.01 percent special privileges to challenge labeling and health and safety local laws and regulations of the 99 percent, which most people call voter suppression, but in this case it should be called voter elimination.

* will eliminate millions of jobs in Latin America, which will drive millions of more people illegally into the United States and depress wages here. See how-the-trans-pacific-partnership-will-destroy-american-jobs-by-destroying-us-exports–Johnhively.wordpress.com .

* will raise pharmaceutical prices by extending patents forcing the 99 percent to pay more for big pharma’s products.

* will override Wall Street regulations, as if the mostly ineffective US regulations inhibit Wall Street profits and illegal activities.

* will increase the US trade deficit. The largest fourteen trade deficits in world history have been the last fourteen US trade deficits. It’s either absolute insanity or absolutely corrupt to desire increasing the trade deficit. Yet, Wyden and other Wall Street Democrats have saliva running down their jowls thinking about voting for Fast Track and the TPP.  Think corruption, not insanity.

Stunningly, Democrats such as Wall Street Senator Ron Wyden support doing all of the above to the American people. And these things are only a few things we know about. Why are these negotiations so secret? US Senator Elizabeth Warren says it best below.

As for Fast Track Authority, if passed by congress, it will mean there be limited debate in congress when the TPP comes up for a vote. Fast track will also prohibit any amendments to the TPP and eliminate any means to filibuster it in the senate. In other words, fast track rigs the political and economic game against the 99 percent and for the 1 percent.

Save your democracy. Stop the corporate takeover of your nation. Call your senators and tell them to vote against Fast Track Authority. Click on the following link to find the phone number and email addresses of your senators; Contact your senators .

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This Will Be As True For Elizabeth Warren If She Runs For President As It Was For FDR

Organized money is what controls politics in the United States. Money can be organized in any number of ways. A corporation is made up of money organized from investors. So too are hedge funds. In FDR’s time, organized mob meant organized crime. So what FDR said below should read,

“Government by the rich is just as dangerous as government by organized crime. Never before in all of our history have these forces been so united against one candidate as they stand today, They are unanimous in their hate for me–and I welcome their hatred.”

That’s the way it will be for Elizabeth Warren should she run for president.

In reality, in our government, organized money and organized crime are the same thing. That’s why so many Wall Street CEO’s can get away any crimes they desire, including fraud and money laundering for drug cartels. So, in reality, today, we have a government that is managed by politicians on the payroll of organized crime.

Perhaps this is why US middle class Senator Elizabeth Warren has refused to run for US president in 2016. She would be taking on the modern version of organized crime. Remember the golden rule; he who has the gold makes the rules. Guess who has the gold in the political markets? Just take a look below, and you’ll discover the answer.

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Why the Republican Party Wants to Give President Obama Imperial Powers Over Trade Legislation Via a Process Called Fast Track

THE PRIMARY PURPOSE OF THE TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP IS TO INCREASE INCOME AND WEALTH INEQUALITY IN THE UNITED STATES. THAT’S WHY PRESIDENT OBAMA AND THE REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP WANT CONGRESS TO APPROVE FAST TRACT LEGISLATION.

When a bill is fast tracked, it cannot be amended or filibustered. With the approval of fast track legislation, 51 senators can pass the Trans Pacific Free Trade Agreement (TPP), which the vast majority of Democratic senators are against, and which the vast majority of American voters are against. By passing Fast Track legislation, the Democrats in the senate will not be able to filibuster this income redistribution scam, so some Democratic senators who want to vote with the Republicans, but whose voters back home don’t want them to, won’t need to vote for the TPP in order to give it enough votes (60 votes) to bypass a filibuster. Nice scam huh?

In other words, President Obama is working with the Republican Party to defeat the Democratic Party. Is this a Democratic president or a Republican president?

The TPP is the largest income and political power redistribution agreement in world history. The TPP will redistribute income and political power from the 99 to the 1 percent. Hundreds of thousands of jobs will be exported under this agreement, and the difference between the old higher wages and the new lower wages will go into the pockets of the 1 percent via higher corporate earnings, rising share prices, and surging dividends.

In addition, the TPP will will take voting rights away from you. You’ll not be able to vote on the state and local levels for such things as health, safety and labeling laws.

There are, of course, many other onerous things that we’ll need to endure if TPP is approved, such as higher pharmaceutical prices. Most of the provisions of this agreement are secret, except to the 600 corporate lobbyists included at the negotiating table.

If congress approves fast track legislation, congress will not have a robust debate on the merits and faults of this agreement, because the president, Wall Street Democrats like Ron Wyden, and most of the Republican Party don’t want this debate to occur. It might cause a surge in public opinion against this agreement.
Because of the sheer size of the deal, it would be miraculous if any member of Congress actually reads and understands the content. The TPP will fail under its own weight without fast track, so it becomes imperative to stop the fast tracking of the TPP.

If the TPP passes, it will make our already difficult job of transforming government into a real democracy that much harder. From every corner of America, every issue group, every patriot, our duty in the near future is to stop the TPP fast track.

So click on the following link, call your senators, as well as your congressman or congresswoman, and tell them to vote against fast track. Contacting the Congress

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US Senator Bernie Sanders About Why We Need to Get Money Out of Politics

Why do we have so much inequality of income and wealth today? The Reagan tax cuts unleashed billions of dollars into the political markets on behalf of the rich. The result has been massive corruption in government in all three branches, and both major political parties are now train wrecks of corruption. The result is large numbers of legislation and international income redistribution agreements falsely label trade agreements. These agreements are designed to redistribute income and wealth from the 99 to the 1 percent. That’s why and how the 1 percent steal over 36 percent of the income people produce in the USA yearly, compared to 8 percent in 1980. That’s also why the economy is historically weak.

The Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) is the latest scam being pushed by the 1 percent through their President Barack Obama, as well as Wall Street Senator’s Ron Wyden, Orrin Hatch and Mitch McConnell. Among other things, the TPP will:

* TPP will give incentives for US corporations to export millions of US jobs. The Federal Reserve estimates that 28 million US jobs were exported between 1990 and 2010.

* TPP will increase US income and wealth inequality. The 1 percent have already taken 95 percent of all income growth in the United States since 2009. When the above jobs were exported, the difference between the old higher US wages and the new lower wages will go straight into the pockets of the 1 percent via higher corporate profits, rising dividends and surging share prices.

* Those lost jobs will no longer be paying the taxes for our infrastructure, social safety nets, schools, fire and police, but those lost jobs will push the stock markets higher.

* TPP will effectively eliminate your voting rights on local and state issues since it will unconstitutionally grant investors of the 0.01 percent special privileges to challenge labeling and health and safety local laws and regulations of the 99 percent, which most people call voter suppression, but in this case it should be called voter elimination,

* TPP will offer new monopolies for Big Pharma to raise medicine prices they charge you (which redistributes income from the 99 to the 1 percent),

* TPP will limit food safety standards (which redistributes and transforms your health into the profits of the 1 percent),

* TPP will block financial regulations aimed at preventing the next financial crisis (which will make it easier for Wall Street to redistribute your income and wealth to the 1 percent).

* TPP will destroy millions of jobs in Latin America (230,000 in the textile industry of El Salvador alone) forcing millions of undocumented immigrants into the United States.

* The result of the above will be to depress wages in both North and South America, all to the benefit of the 1 percent, and all at the expense of the 99 percent.

* And we can’t forget that TPP will increase the already massive US trade deficit with other nations, which is supposed to be a bad thing. The exported jobs will be producing goods overseas rather than here, and then US corporations will export their products from China and Vietnam into the United States, exacerbating the current trade deficit.

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Video: The Result of Reaganomics–Wealth Distribution in the United States: the 1 percent own 40 percent of US wealth in 2009. Now it’s greater than That in 2015!

Inequality in the United States began with a simple idea; give more money to the rich so they can purchase the favors of government. This was called the Reagan tax cuts. The rich used their money to purchase more tax breaks in the political markets, and that’s exactly what the political area is; a market with buyers and sellers.

When President Franklin Roosevelt pushed for a 90 percent top marginal tax rate, he did it to act as a maximum wage, to save democracy from being purchased by the rich. Reagan let the genie out of the bottle.

Since Reagan, all sorts of legislation has been passed to redistribute income from the 99 to the 1 percent, including income redistribution treaties, falsely referred to as trade agreements.

Now President Obama is pushing the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the largest income redistribution agreement of all time. Since 2009, the rich have stolen 95 percent of all income growth. The TPP will increase this inequality. Wall Street Senator’s Orrin Hatch, Mitch McConnell and Ron Wyden are all for the TPP, since they have a history of siding with legislation that redistributes income from the 99 to the 1 percent.

In other words, Reagan’s tax cuts began rigging the game of economics and politics in favor of the 1 percent.

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Video: What the 1 Percent Don’t Want You to Know

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The 1% will own more wealth than the rest of the world’s 99 percent—by next year

The one percent are set to own over 50 percent of the world’s wealth sometime next year if current trends continue, according to a new report by Oxfam, a poverty fighting group. The report notes that this extreme inequality “is the consequence of political choices. Extreme poverty and inequality are the result of a skewed economic and political system that favors the few at the expense of everyone else.”

Basically, the folks at Oxfam are saying that the golden rule is the cause of inequality; “he who has the gold makes the rules.”

Currently, the top 1 percent own about 48 percent of the world’s wealth, up from slightly above 44 percent in 2010. Much of this rapid growth is due to free trade treaties which place downward pressure on wages.

Wealth, by the way, are things that you own. It’s different than income, which is money you have coming in, either in the form of income, or capital gains.

There is an important connection between income and wealth. You cannot accumulate wealth without getting the income to do so. So in that sense, the massive difference between the wealth owned by the 1 and the 99 percent is caused by a massive income inequality, which is nothing more than a function of inequality of political power, which is the root cause of wealth inequality.

The Oxfam report notes that the wealth of the world’s 80 richest people has doubled from 2009 to 2014. Most of the world’s billionaires get their money primarily from industries such as investments, banking and pharmaceuticals, which coincidentally, amazingly, are industries that will prosper even more if the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) becomes law. We know this because of leaked documents. 600 corporate lobbyists are helping the negotiators secretly construct this deal, and it’s literally a done deal. The TPP is a perfect example of how the rich use their political clout to redistribute income from the 99 percent to themselves.

For more on the Oxfam report, click the link below.

Click to access Wealth_Having_it_all_and_wanting_more.pdf

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The Top 1 Percent’s Share of Income from Wealth Has Been Rising for Decades

The Top 1 Percent’s Share of Income from Wealth Has Been Rising for Decades, thanks to legislation supported by Wall Street senator’s Ron Wyden, Mitch McConnell, and Orrin Hatch, as well as President’s Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. We can’t forget Wall Street executives and the Koch brothers are also keen political supporters of the 1 percent massing more and more of the nation’s wealth, which is mostly accrued by the rich via legislation supported by those listed above, among many others.

By the way, wealth is assets, such as stocks, bonds, gold, houses, and other things of value. Income is money derived from either salaries, wages, dividends or capital gains.

Source: Economic Policy Institute

The result of an unequal flow of political power is an unequal flow of income and an unequal flow of wealth. The result of all of that is an economy tittering on the brink of the next great depression, which will be far worse for the 99 percent than the last recession.

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