June 27, 2008
National Review Online on Eliminating the Social Security Tax Cap
By Eric Cantor
This November's elections may well hinge on who can best secure the promise of a more certain economic future for American families. Amidst unprecedented foreign competition for jobs and investment, voters have the option of two vastly different approaches.
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Consider Sen. Obama's pledge to lift the cap on the Social Security payroll tax for all earners for whom all income over $102,000 is currently exempted - above $250,000.
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Obama's prescription for Social Security payroll taxes is but one piece of a broader, growth-killing agenda. Instead of making the tax relief of 2001 permanent, the senator plans for it to expire. And, perhaps unaware that at least half the country owns shares of stock, Obama would lift the tax rate on capital gains from 15 to 20 percent. The threat of these tax increases leaves a cloud of uncertainty over American investors and businesses of all sizes. Capital-investment-hungry businesses, already feeling the heat from competitors in China, India, and Europe, are making decisions today based on what their tax bite will be at a later time.
Obama's high-tax absolutism places him firmly on the left end of the ideological spectrum - and he's not backing away. His planned increases in payroll and federal income taxes would result in a top marginal tax rate of between 55 and 61 percent, according to the Tax Foundation.
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