Democrats push $150B stock tax on Wall Street

[Freedom&Liberty]

A House bill still being drafted aims to raise $150 billion each year to pay for new jobs.

Under a bill being drafted by Democratic Reps. Peter DeFazio (Ore.) and Ed Perlmutter (Colo.), the sale and purchase of financial instruments such as stocks, options, derivatives and futures would face a 0.25 percent tax.

The bill, a copy of which was obtained by The Hill, is titled the “Let Wall Street Pay for the Restoration of Main Street Act of 2009.”
.....
A group of consumer watchdog organizations and labor unions sent DeFazio a letter this week supporting the tax bill.

“Your bill would put Wall Street to work for the public good, by placing a modest securities transaction tax on trades of stocks, options and swaps. A tax on these trades has little impact on the average investor or pension fund because they hold their investments for the long term, but it does disincentivize Wall Street gambling and high-volume short-term speculative trading,” the organizations wrote.

The groups include: Americans for Financial Reform, Public Citizen, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the AFL-CIO, among others.
http://thehill.com/homenews/house/69...150b-stock-tax

Imagine that, labor unions pushing a tax bill.

[BooRadley]

A tax on these trades has little impact on the average investor or pension fund because they hold their investments for the long term, but it does disincentivize Wall Street gambling and high-volume short-term speculative trading

He has a point.

[Freedom&Liberty]

We already have more than enough public sector jobs. This is just more redistribution of wealth.

[boedicca]

The telling factoid is that this is being pushed by SEIU and the AFL-CIO.

[Snouter]

A tax on these trades has little impact on the average investor or pension fund because they hold their investments for the long term, but it does disincentivize Wall Street gambling and high-volume short-term speculative trading

This shows that they are either naive, stupid or lying through their teeth. The "average investor" is a myth. Nobody except a few people who can't accept the fact the markets are rigged buy and hold anymore. And in the internet age, nobody has the patience for that. And it is so silly for politicians, democrats in particular, to think they can predict behavior in an economic context when they have inflicted so much unnecessary damage economically.

The question is what can this bill do to stop Hedge Funds like Maddoff and Soros from scamming and fleecing the American system year after year.

[boedicca]

Oooh Oooh! Ooohhh!!!!!

I know the answer!

Nothing. It will do absolutely nothing to eliminate Madoff/Soros fraud - but will enable unions and politicians to defraud taxpayers of a new source of funds.

[86Dude]

Utter, complete, stupidity.

[Farnsworth,Luther P.]

There are sales taxes on almost everything consumer and recreational goods and services, and there is no reason not to have one on gambling, which is all the Stock Exchanges are, big casinos.

[hadit]

Originally Posted by BooRadley

He has a point.

Yup, right on top of his head. Why are taxpayers supposed to pay for the government to create parasitic jobs?

[Corporate Avenger]

Originally Posted by Farnsworth,Luther P.

There are sales taxes on almost everything consumer and recreational goods and services, and there is no reason not to have one on gambling, which is all the Stock Exchanges are, big casinos.

Exactly, why would anybody be against taxing a bunch of billionaires when they gamble with our economy?

That's the least they can do, even though wall st. should be torched and every banker pos should have his head put on a pike.

[boedicca]

Originally Posted by Corporate Avenger

Exactly, why would anybody be against taxing a bunch of billionaires when they gamble with our economy?

That's the least they can do, even though wall st. should be torched and every banker pos should have his head put on a pike.

Because they pay capital gains taxes on the eventual sale.

This is a stupid tax on capital before anything has been earned - and all it will do is fuel the off-shoring of trading. We've already lost much of the global IPO market due to SarBox - so let's lose stock trading as well.

[Farnsworth,Luther P.]

Originally Posted by boedicca

Because they pay capital gains taxes on the eventual sale.

So what? Then they won't mind paying a sales tax on their gambling.

This is a stupid tax on capital before anything has been earned - and all it will do is fuel the off-shoring of trading. We've already lost much of the global IPO market due to SarBox - so let's lose stock trading as well.

Good idea; they don't use the money to invest here anyway, they invest it in Mexico and Red China, anywhere where the 'government' provides them with slave labor and indentured servants, so to hell with them.

[boedicca]

You are economically naive.

This tax is going to hit middle class people buying stock in their 401Ks - who do not have the option of moving these accounts offshore.

And anyone who views investing as gambling would be better off putting their cash in a tin can and burying it in a hole in the backyard (the ACORN savings plan).

[boedicca]

Here's the math: assume a small investor (this is not a 401K, just a bit of money in a Schwab account) is a relatively conservative and invests in mutual funds, with a goal of a 5% annual gain.

The .25% tax on the purchase and sale adds up to a .5% tax on the principle, or a 10% tax on their gain (this is on top of the planned increase in capital gains taxes to 25%) - voila, a 35% tax on a middle class person's little investment fund.