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United States of Unfairness?

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    Charles Krauthammer weighs in on President Obama's remarks

  • Duration 6:56
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Called fairness deficit the president is calling on congress to pass about the -- What we have debates now about the Buffett rule that we've been talking about where we say if you make a million dollars a year -- more.

You shouldn't pay a lower tax rate -- your secretary.

That is not.

An argument.

About redistribution that is an argument about growth.

My next guest says the president's support for the Buffett rule has little to do with the growth of its all about politics and winning that second term in office.

Here explain his syndicated columnist Fox News contributor Charles Krauthammer.

Hi Charles thank you to be in on this evening and discipline to do is -- and I feel like enough full disclosure I need to tell people I'm the up president of your fan club.

-- -- I appreciate that very mindset and I hope that Swiss bank is paying you and you put a Saturday at the regularly delayed show.

Well thank you appreciate it we're small but what quality.

So as -- and he Charles this issue of fairness in the Buffett rule.

The president has gone even far there we've actually got a quote from my last September we can put up on the screen.

Where he claims essentially.

That the basic principle of fairness -- which -- means the Buffett rule.

It applied to our tax code could raise enough money that not only do we pay for our jobs but we also stabilize our debt and deficits for the next decade.

Sounds really -- -- helped.

Well -- literally incredible it's really it's almost an embarrassment is so shameless if you were to collect about for tax.

For the next 250.

Years that's longer than the life of this republic.

You will not have covered the deficit.

Obama as a deficit for 2011.

You've collected for a -- 250 years so we're now -- -- -- 2612.

And you've covered 2011 and 2012.

And you need to cover -- 498.

The years of deficits this is a preposterous statement and he knows it and also on growth.

It's equally deceptive.

What -- tax essentially is it's a doubling of the capital gains tax.

It's disguise but that's the reason why the bus hit the rates are lower into the capital gains rate and -- slower than the rate for normal income so he doubles it.

Now the reason that that's not a good idea.

He's because when you double the rate you actually decreasing amount that the treasury receives continued decreased to gross -- you shrinking the pool of capital.

That's out there that that people can invest and hire other people's.

The reason that we had an economic.

The boom after the Kennedy tax cuts.

And the Reagan the cuts twenty years later this precisely that they cut rates and particularly that they cut capital gains rates.

But Obama is so obsessed with the notion he's notion.

Of fairness.

That when he was asked in 2008 and one of the media interviews with I think it was in one of the debate.

I think we actually got that video yeah -- clearly would you have to show let's show the -- it's from a debate exactly -- 2008 where he's asked about the historical fact of the impact of raising capital gains taxes.

Actually Bill Clinton in 1997.

Signed legislation that dropped the capital gains tax to 20% right and George Bush has taken it down to 15% and in each instance.

When the rate dropped revenues from the tax increase.

The government took in more money.

And in the 1980s.

When the tax was increased to 20% of revenues went down.

So why -- it at all especially given the fact that a hundred million people in this country own stock and would be affected.

Well Charlie what I've said is that I would look at raising the capital gains tax.

For purposes of fairness and.

So he really seems not to care that in fact it's gonna have a negative impact on revenue.

Well that shows if they show.

These are spontaneous unrehearsed I had no idea he had that you can't.

But that's the famous line where he basically says I'm gonna raise the rate even if it decreases the amount -- revenue this is insane the purpose of taxation.

Is to raise revenue and to pay for stuff the government has to do that's the only reason the government swipes your money.

And he's saying now raise -- race even if it decreases the amount.

Simply because of this abstraction I have which means I want to take the money from the rich and distributed elsewhere and think that somehow it's gonna help the general economy.

It makes no sense and look what's the reason he's doing all this visit I miss the direction and place a way to have the shiny object.

He doesn't want to talk about.

What he's done he's had the longest over 8% unemployment since the Great Depression.

He has had the great -- -- was the most anemic.

Recovery of any recession since the Second World War.

And he's accumulated in one term.

The greatest amount of debt five trillion dollars in galactic history so we can't run on that so instead he's -- -- hold the ball over there.

A -- the -- and he'll say look over here so he doesn't have to speak about a record which has been an economic.

Disaster.

Well and you've also made the point -- that that it's really dereliction of duty I mean he's got this distraction going on while we are headed towards an immediate -- and near term.

Debt crisis so if you if you look at what he's doing here it's beyond just sort of politicking -- an -- -- doesn't matter it has great significance.

And any sense it could turn out to be historically tragic.

We have one leg up on the Europeans.

Who are way ahead of us in the in the entitlement state syndrome they are already in a debt explosion.

We have a few years ahead of us because we are still.

-- less of an entitlement state precious years Obama himself has spoken about this how this rate of debt is unsustainable what does he do he appoints a commission.

Denny completely ignores its recommendations to the Republicans have stuck there next item on on on a -- Proposing a budget the Ryan budget which will actually cut spending.

The lower tax rates while broadening the base by cutting exemptions and does entitlement reforms.

Which everyone understands is where the money is -- we'll save our economy Obama has not done nothing not any of that the only thing he's done.

-- to savagely attacked the Ryan plan and claim that Republicans want to throw orphans and widows in the snow and protect the rich can do nothing else.

That's his argument and he hasn't done anything for a debt crises that we could see coming.

And then he has left completely untouched in a very very responsible way.

And the CBO said just today that his budget for 2013 is gonna add potentially three point nine trillion dollars to deficits over the next ten years so -- It is indeed a very troubling picture but thank you very much Charles for being with us tonight.

-- -- and can.

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