Obama & McCain on Taxes: Pretty Simple Really

I read an interesting piece this morning from "Business Week" by Chris Farrell- in which he discusses the difference between the two tax plans.

The article is worth a read. However, it all boils down to this:

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Senator McCain's tax cuts would primarily benefit those with very high incomes,[emphasis mine] almost all of whom would receive large tax cuts that would, on average, raise their aftertax incomes by more than twice the average for all households. Many fewer households at the bottom of the income distribution would get tax cuts, and those whose taxes fall would, on average, see their aftertax income rise much less.

-- In marked contrast, Senator Obama offers much larger tax breaks to low- and middle-income taxpayers [emphasis mine] and would increase taxes on high-income taxpayers. The largest tax cuts, as a share of income, would go to those at the bottom of the distribution, while taxpayers with the highest income would see their taxes rise.

That is the most important thing for most people to remember. There are, however, to be fair, some interesting twists to Obama's plan. TazVox, the Tax Policy Center blog, lays out some interesting quirks of Obama's plan...particularly when it comes to Senior Citizens on a fixed income.

While very poor single seniors see a drop under Obama's plan, those with more moderately comfortable incomes see a rise, and, in another, more disturbing quirk, poor MARRIED seniors also see a rise-

On the whole, of course, Obama's plan is really the ONLY sane choice for this country...we've been trying Reagan's trickle down economics for over a quarter century...the gap between rich and poor is growing, the nation's treasure is spent and the debt is still rising, and each day sees the rolling back of middle class gains made in the years following Franklin Roosevelt's presidency...this, in turn, sees our nation grow weaker.