Feeling the Burn!

Feel the 'Bern'

Bernie Sanders is proposing many things if gets elected President.  Many things which will not be free.  Many things that will necessitate tax hikes.  Significant tax hikes.

Business healthcare premium tax — $6.3 trillion
Bernie thinks taxing businesses will raise enough money to pay for socialized medicine, er, free health care. Actually raising taxes will cause employers to lay off workers in an effort to reduce the tax burden.  So employees' savings on health care will not be enough to offset lost jobs.
Ending tax free status of employer health insurance — $3.1 trillion
Same logic as above.  I would propose removing the exempt employer status, and give raises to all employees to buy their own insurance.
Wall Street speculation tax — $3 trillion
What the heck is Wall Street speculation anyway?  If that means investments, then you can kiss Wall Street goodbye, in which case there will be no more speculation.  If people cannot expect a return, there will be no investment.
Individual healthcare premium tax — $2.1 trillion
More taxes on individuals following a decade of shrinking income.  Make sense to anyone?
Social Security tax hike — $1.2 trillion
This might make sense if Social Security was solvent, which it is not.  Raising teh eligibility age makes more sense, though this one may be negotiable for me.
Raising marginal income tax rates — $1.1 trillion
Raising tax rates on smaller income is a lose:lose proposition every time.
Corporate offshore income tax — $ 1 trillion
A better idea is a tax holiday which would repatriate the money being held overseas.
Capital gains tax hike — $920 billion
How is this different than the speculation tax above?  Oh, it piles on to that one.
Payroll tax hike — $319 billion
More taxes for working people?  Seriously?  See raising marginal income tax above.
Death tax hike — $243 billion
Nothing like double taxation to make a socialist feel good.  Tax me when I earn it, and tax my family when I die.
Scrapping tax deductions — $150 billion
Limit deductions.  Sounds like raise tax rates to me.
Energy tax — $135 billion
Al Gore would be proud, but until any form of energy is cheap enough to make people switch, they won't.  Green energy is not cost effective and therefore is not a good option.  Maybe one day it will be.
Carried interest tax — $15.6 billion
This earned interest is already taxable income.  So just say increased taxes again.

Liberals and socialists never learn that to get more of something you subsidize, and for less you tax it.  When you increase the tax rate you generally get less tax income due to the shrinking base being taxed.  Politicians never believe that a change in taxation results in changed behavior, yet it happens every time they change the tax rates.  But of course they know this is true because they are using the tax code to reward and/or punish various behaviors already.  They want their cake and to eat it too.