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Trump promises permanent cut to payroll tax funding Social Security and Medicare if he’s reelected

ZiprHead

ZiprHead

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2020/08/08/trump-payroll-tax-cut/

President Trump pledged on Saturday to pursue a permanent cut to the payroll taxes that fund Social Security and Medicare if he wins reelection in November, a hard-to-accomplish political gambit that some experts see as a major headache for the future of the country’s entitlement programs.

Trump unexpectedly promised the policy action as he signed a directive that aims to help cash-starved Americans amid the coronavirus pandemic. The order allows workers to postpone their payroll tax payments into next year but doesn’t absolve their bills outright — though the president said he would seek to waive what people owe if he prevails on Election Day.

“If I’m victorious on November 3rd, I plan to forgive these taxes and make permanent cuts to the payroll tax,” Trump said at a news conference in Bedminster, N.J. “I’m going to make them all permanent.”
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Which means, once again, that he was lying in '16 with all that he blathered about Social Security and Medicare. But then again, you'd have to be, in the Trumpian phrase, dumb as a rock if you ever thought he cared a whit about the entitlements (or, more correctly, paid arrangements -- "entitlements" is too Norquisty.)
I am still waiting to hear the blowback from the Senate Trumpsuckers on his exec. order. If Obama, say, around 2015, had begun signing e.o.'s because McTurtle was scuttling every job incentive bill -- and Obama tried to create an incentive somehow with an e.o. -- can you even imagine the decibel level from the Fox News Nation? They'd be making speeches about tyranny and the destruction of the Constitution. And for once, they'd have a case. I believe they'd have impeached him. Look how much they talked about it back then. Actually going around a stalled Congress and trying to create a new spending program from the White House???? Science fiction, brought to you straight from the Trump Nebula. (I can't believe this will actually get off the ground; it's just too illegal. It's Trump's way of creating a headline where he cares about the laid-off workers, and he's the Lone Warrior fighting for them, but Deep State won't... sorry, I'm going to throw up, and I've got about half a minute leeway here...no time to add the other parenthesis--
 
Why would there be any blowback? The GOP would like to eliminate SS and Medicare, it's just they don't want to face the voter's wrath for doing so. If the Orange Turd will grab the third rail they'll secretly cheer him on.
 
Ya may be right. In Obama's day, they gravely talked about a Constitutional crisis whenever there were e.o.'s on immigration and borders. Trump has a whole circus of executive action on this -- it's of course his #1 obsession after pussy -- and the Senate's okay with that.
 
I read that Trump and company want to cut something like 200 billion dollars out of the SS and M'care budget. Why aren't the Democrats making this their primary attack on Trump and the Republicans? Every single one of my former Trump supporting patients, many of whom are no longer living now, were dependent on SS for their income and M'care for their health care. More than half also had M'caid as well. It's been known or rumored for years that the Republicans want to destroy these two very important programs, that allow the disabled and older adults to survive. One would need many millions of dollars to support themselves in old age without the benefit of SS. There aren't many older adults who even have a few hundred thousand in savings. I guess the Republicans want anyone who can't work due to disability or can't work due to age to be left to die or sit on the street corner to beg. Better yet, maybe they expect their children to support them. Yeah. That will work.

Biden already has gained the support of the majority of people over 65, but anyone who is over 65, nearing 65 or has parents or grandparents who depend on SS and M'care should realize how important it is for the Dems to get control of the Senate and the WH. Other progressive programs can be worked out after the election. Right now, we can appeal to people who know the importance of these programs but who don't realize that the Republicans want to destroy them, or at least cut back on an already vastly under funded entitlement that we all pay into during the course of our woking lives.

Remember when Bush wanted to privatize SS shortly before the recession and stock market crash near the end of his presidency? I remember some of my older friends losing a large percentage of their investment savings during the crash of 1987 too. No. Privatizing won't work. We need to support the programs that help those who are least able to support themselves.
 
My understanding is that the FICA thing wasn't even part of the Executive Order, so there could be no viable application of it. Then there is the issue of how in the world do companies adjust for not taking out FICA.
 
southernhybrid said:
I read that Trump and company want to cut something like 200 billion dollars out of the SS and M'care budget. Why aren't the Democrats making this their primary attack on Trump and the Republicans? Every single one of my former Trump supporting patients, many of whom are no longer living now, were dependent on SS for their income and M'care for their health care. More than half also had M'caid as well. It's been known or rumored for years that the Republicans want to destroy these two very important programs, that allow the disabled and older adults to survive. One would need many millions of dollars to support themselves in old age without the benefit of SS. There aren't many older adults who even have a few hundred thousand in savings. I guess the Republicans want anyone who can't work due to disability or can't work due to age to be left to die or sit on the street corner to beg. Better yet, maybe they expect their children to support them. Yeah. That will work.

Biden already has gained the support of the majority of people over 65, but anyone who is over 65, nearing 65 or has parents or grandparents who depend on SS and M'care should realize how important it is for the Dems to get control of the Senate and the WH. Other progressive programs can be worked out after the election. Right now, we can appeal to people who know the importance of these programs but who don't realize that the Republicans want to destroy them, or at least cut back on an already vastly under funded entitlement that we all pay into during the course of our woking lives.

Remember when Bush wanted to privatize SS shortly before the recession and stock market crash near the end of his presidency? I remember some of my older friends losing a large percentage of their investment savings during the crash of 1987 too. No. Privatizing won't work. We need to support the programs that help those who are least able to support themselves.
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I just heard an anti-Trump commercial this morning that mentions it.
 
ZiprHead said:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2020/08/08/trump-payroll-tax-cut/

President Trump pledged on Saturday to pursue a permanent cut to the payroll taxes that fund Social Security and Medicare if he wins reelection in November, a hard-to-accomplish political gambit that some experts see as a major headache for the future of the country’s entitlement programs.

Trump unexpectedly promised the policy action as he signed a directive that aims to help cash-starved Americans amid the coronavirus pandemic. The order allows workers to postpone their payroll tax payments into next year but doesn’t absolve their bills outright — though the president said he would seek to waive what people owe if he prevails on Election Day.

“If I’m victorious on November 3rd, I plan to forgive these taxes and make permanent cuts to the payroll tax,” Trump said at a news conference in Bedminster, N.J. “I’m going to make them all permanent.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

.. and if that doesn't work, he'll unleash his super secret plan to guarantee continued support from his base... FREE PIZZA THURSDAYS AND NO HOMEWORK ON FRIDAYS!
 
Now Trump wants to defer payroll taxes for those making $104,000 per year or less. In other words a temporary "tax cut" that they will have to pay later. Of course, that will require legislation since he does not have the constitutional authority to do that.

He is also proposing unilaterally giving $400 extra on unemployment per check with $300 coming from the feds and $100 from the states. Again, he does not have the constitutional authority to do this by executive order.
 
Jimmy Higgins said:
My understanding is that the FICA thing wasn't even part of the Executive Order, so there could be no viable application of it. Then there is the issue of how in the world do companies adjust for not taking out FICA.
Click to expand...
He issued one executive order and three executive memorandums. My thoughts are that the memorandums were used because he could not cite applicable federal law to support what he wanted to do in those, which is required in executive orders.

The payroll tax deferral was issued as an executive memorandum, and is only for the 6.2% OASDI portion withheld from employees for the period of September 1 through December 31:“The Secretary of the Treasury is hereby directed to use his authority pursuant to 26 U.S.C. 7508A to defer the withholding, deposit, and payment of the tax imposed by 26 U.S.C. 3101(a)”.

That section is as follows: “26 U.S. Code 3101(a) Old-age, survivors, and disability insurance
In addition to other taxes, there is hereby imposed on the income of every individual a tax equal to 6.2 percent of the wages (as defined in section 3121(a)) received by the individual with respect to employment”.

The Medicare tax withholding of 1.45% is not deferred according to the memorandum. Nor is there any deferral of the employer part of either tax.

And yes, this is simply a deferral; the taxes are still owed by taxpayers unless there is legislation passed to forgive those taxes. Take a look at your paystubs and figure out yourself how much money you are going to owe for those taxes if this actually does take effect as specified in the memorandum.

As far as how companies can adjust for not withholding the OASDI, we have been through this before. Obama reduced that withholding to 4.2% temporarily in 2011. It was a nightmare for those of us who work in accounting software support, due to the way the government requires these payroll taxes to be calculated as a year to date amount plus software developers having to try to reprogram payroll calculations in next to no lead time.

Read the memorandum here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presiden...-obligations-light-ongoing-covid-19-disaster/

I also have to say that The Washington Post was the only major media outlet I saw to actually get the information on this correct. All of the others said that Medicare taxes were also deferred, which they were not.

Ruth
 
So, vote for me and I'll give you money. If you have a job, that is.

It'll be interesting to see if people go for it, after decades of SS going broke talk.
 
Typical republican response to everything. Things are going great, tax cuts. Thing are going bad, tax cuts.

When all you have is a hammer...
 
ZiprHead said:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2020/08/08/trump-payroll-tax-cut/

President Trump pledged on Saturday to pursue a permanent cut to the payroll taxes that fund Social Security and Medicare if he wins reelection in November, a hard-to-accomplish political gambit that some experts see as a major headache for the future of the country’s entitlement programs.

Trump unexpectedly promised the policy action as he signed a directive that aims to help cash-starved Americans amid the coronavirus pandemic. The order allows workers to postpone their payroll tax payments into next year but doesn’t absolve their bills outright — though the president said he would seek to waive what people owe if he prevails on Election Day.

“If I’m victorious on November 3rd, I plan to forgive these taxes and make permanent cuts to the payroll tax,” Trump said at a news conference in Bedminster, N.J. “I’m going to make them all permanent.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

I didn't know that a regressive tax was the only way to fund those programs. What if Trump turns around and says "to replace that regressive tax, I will tax the billionaires"? Would that make to happy?
 
Jason Harvestdancer said:
. What if Trump turns around and says "to replace that regressive tax, I will tax the billionaires"? Would that make to happy?
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Trump SAYS a lot, and very little is aimed at making liberals happy. And he often touts his executives memorandums as accomplishing things they absolutely do not.

So, if he says he will tax the rich, i will believe it when i see it.

If he promises to fund entitlement programs, i will believe it when i see it.
 
Jason Harvestdancer said:
I would be most surprised if he funded anything given that Congress funds things.
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The GOP has reigned Trumps usurping of their power how times? Those tariffs are not legitimate national security issues. Trump’s graft with his businesses and interests. The whole Ukraine thing where he broke the law in not fully providing the funds to Ukraine as they ran out of time. Fucking around with budgets for his stupid useless wall.
 
So back to the question - given that the current taxes supporting those programs are very regressive, if someone proposed replacing those highly regressive taxes with taxes on the wealthy, would you applaud the proposal?

Suppose Trump made the proposal then? Would it be good because of the content of the proposal or bad because of the author of the proposal?

Do you think highly regressive taxes are a good thing or a bad thing?
 
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