Spreading the Wealth

It's only a couple of days away from Election Day 2008. I am sure most of you have made up your mind for whom you will be voting (or have voted already). However, I felt the need to add one more rant before we all go to the polls.

Lately I have been thinking about what Obama said in reply to the question from Joe the Plumber about the candidate's tax plan. I don't agree that spreading the wealth is a code phrase for socialism as some have suggested. But I have been thinking a lot about what it could really mean. The meat of Obama's plan is to raise taxes on the rich, lower taxes on the middle class and dole out cash to many earners who are currently not paying any taxes at all. That is indeed spreading the wealth.

Now I am by no means rich. I am now and have always been firmly rooted financially in the middle class. In the interest of full disclosure, I do stand to lose a substantial amount of money in the future if the capital gains tax break is allowed to expire, as Obama has suggested (this was one of Bush's so-called tax breaks for the rich). In any case, taxing the rich at first does not seem like such a bad idea. After all, as Willie Sutton the bank robber reportedly said, "that is where the money is".

Indeed it is. Currently the top 5% of all wage earners pay 60% of all taxes. Strong shoulders should be able to bear a little more load. Give the hard working man (or woman) a break at the expense of the rich, who certainly can afford it. Let their polo ponies eat hamburger rather than steak. As Obama said to Joe: "it's good for everybody" (well maybe not the ponies).

The problem I see here is this: with a Democrat as President, a filibuster-proof Democrat controlled Congress in power and a new leadership eager for reform we may see those tax increases trickle down to the middle class. If you think back to Daddy Bush's acceptance speech in 1988 he said, now infamously: "Read my lips: no new taxes". We all know what happened after that.

My concern is that the same thing could happen to President Obama. I trust and admire the man but there is no guarantee that he can keep his pledge to tax only those currently considered rich. What is middle class today might look like rich in the future, especially with an electorate hungry for the many entitlements they will expect from a Democrat controlled government. The money has to come from somewhere and the rich are already paying a hefty chunk.

I doubt what I have written here will change anyone's vote but it is good food for thought. Be careful what you wish for. My worry is that in the near future I will have to spread something closer to my backside :-0.

To see more of what to expect in a President Obama future you might want to read this article by Pat Buchanan. It also appeared in today's Houston Chronicle.

Now go vote!