Benjamin Franklin, wise man that he was, indicated the only two things we cannot avoid are death and taxes and in some cases when you die is when you are taxed the most. To understand the "Federal Estate Tax" one must understand how it started. The Estate Tax in its earliest form was instituted in 1916 at that time it was called an "Inheritance Tax" and this tax was levied against the beneficiary of the estate. In most cases this tax was levied against people, whom could least afford this type of tax. The "Inheritance Tax" was eventually restructured to be levied against estates and was protected by a deductible so the people who got the most benefit from the government were also the people who bore the greatest burden of the tax thereby the "Federal Estate Tax" was born. This tax was levied only three years after the 16th Amendment "The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several states, and without regard to any census or enumeration" the "Income Tax."
It is also somewhat misleading to indicate that the "Federal Estate Tax" was repealed. It by law is being phased out and in the year 2010 it will be repealed. Each year from 2001-2009 the protected amount will get higher. Then in 2011 it will return to the 2002 parameters. So while it is a reduction there is only one year 2010 where the actual tax is repealed.
What the "Estate Tax" does is attempt to even the playing field it tries to create equality by reducing the fortunes of the truly wealthy and establishing a fund available to the government that happens after the earner of the estate is gone which causes no hardship to the person who acquired the wealth. What in fact it managed to do is employ an entire discipline of accountants and attorneys who make it their life's work finding loopholes. One of the largest loopholes is donations to charities and non-profits, while it isn't really a loophole it is more like spite work. It is more like if you will not let my family have it then I will give it to someone from whom you cannot take it away. The money that is being lost to the government by the phase out of the "Estate Tax" will need to be replaced for the short term.
The Gilded Age refers to a period in which things were fraudulent and deceitful; the surface was clinquant while underneath that lustrous coat laid corruption. During the Gilded Age companies recruited to corrupt methods to further increase profits, leading to an increase in power, rapid economic prosperity, and domination of industries, leading to monopolistic corporations. As a result, antitrust laws to regulate business began to emerge in the late 19th and early 20th century known as the Progressive Era. Among these companies was Standard Oil, which was founded in 1870 by John D. Rockefeller; in 1880, Standard Oil was responsible for refining 90 percent of America’s oil and between 1880-1910, dominating the oil industry (Marshall). The lack of intervention from the government and regulations impeding monopolistic practices allowed Standard Oil to
Sixteenth Amendment- Authorization of an Income Tax – Progressives thought this would slow down the rising wealth of the richest Americans by using a sliding or progressive scale where the wealthier would pay more into the system. In 1907, Roosevelt supported the tax but it took two years until his Successor, Taft endorsed the constitutional amendment for the tax. The Sixteenth Amendment was finally ratified by the states in 1913. The origin of the income tax came William J Bryan in 1894 to help redistribute wealth and then from Roosevelt and his dedication to reform of corporations. I agree with an income tax to pay for all of our government systems and departments, but I believe there was a misfire with “redistributing wealth.” The redistribution is seen in welfare systems whereby individuals receive money to live. This is meant to be a temporary assistance, but sadly, most that are in the system are stuck due to lack of assistance in learning how to escape poverty. There are a lot of government funded programs, but there is no general help system to help lift people up and stay up, so there continues a cycle of
The Federalist papers were written by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay. The purpose of these papers was to persuade American’s to disregard the Articles of Confederation and to replace it with the Constitution. In Federalist papers 10, 51, and 78 are crucial ideas discussed such as liberty, factions, separation of powers, and the electoral system and pluralism.
Amongst the Anti-Federalist Papers, there are at least three arguments against the proposed checks and balances system. At the very beginning of these papers, Centinel quickly introduces the first of them. The author defines the thought of the system as proposed by Adams. He then argues that the system would only work in a society with hereditary orders. His example: the British have such orders, creating real distinctions of rank and interests. Even in this system, according to Centinel, the only “operative and efficient check” is the sense of the masses.
The 19th Amendment recognized the right of women to participate in politics equally like men. Well, do you know when it was ratified? It was on August 8th, 1920, which is really recent. After more than seventy years of relentless work, women finally won the struggle. The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prevents the United States federal government and the states from denying the right of citizens to vote on the basis of their sex. In other words, it guarantees the right to vote for all Americans including blacks and women. This amendment resulted in some impacts on American society. It also resulted in a significant change in American politics.
Many debates have been waged over the decades on what will be taxed, on who shall be taxed and how taxes are collected. Since the 16th Amendment was ratified in 1913, the debate has intensified, centering on how high to make the income tax rate. Most Americans were not concerned since the Amendment was sold to them as something that would only affect corporations and the rich. With ever increasing fervor these corporations created lobbyists to convince Congress to exempt them from some or all of the income tax. The big breakthrough in this was taxing the worker directly with payroll taxes during World War II. This method of collecting income tax was sold to Americans as temporary, but Congress has extended it indefinitely and the public has become used to it. The next few decades saw the debate revolve around creating tax breaks for individuals in an attempt to modify behavior or spending. This has resulted in over 67,000 pages of tax code and an entire industry devoted to tax compliance and evasion, with the unintended behavioral change of corporations and the rich parking their money outside of the United States in small island nations to avoid taxation. These offshore accounts are estimated to hold $10 trillion dollars, a number approximate to the national debt. The FairTax Act should be enacted because it eliminates all federal income taxes for individuals and corporations, eliminates all federal payroll withholding taxes, abolishes estate and capital gains taxes and repeals the 16th Amendment; thus eliminating the need for offshore accounts.
The Independent Journal published the first Federalist essay in 1787, closely following the Constitutional Convention. This was one of 85 essays that were all soon published in support of the Constitution. The essays were all published under the alias name “Publius.” All essays were compiled into a single volume titled The Federalist Papers. The Federalist Papers is considered a significant illustration of American political philosophy under the Articles of Confederation, which were adopted by the Continental Congress. The Articles set up the first legislative system that unified the thirteen states that battled in the American Revolution. A major theme that was discussed in the essays centers around the idea that the United States could not continue to endure under the Articles of Confederation and the weaknesses that accompany it. The Articles gave states the authority to create their own laws, however they were unsuccessful in creating a strong government. The essay suggested that immediate action be taken to prevent the impending anarchy that would ensue under these Articles.
The “Fairness of Taxation or Wealth Tax” is where taxes are calculated by the net worth of the person or the couple (household). This would be hard for tax collectors to determine each and every component of net worth of a person.
Thomas Jefferson was born in what is now Albermarle County, Virginia on April 13, 1743. Jefferson was educated at the College of William and Mary and then went on to study law with George Wythe. Thomas Jefferson is most well known for his part in writing the Declaration of Independence and for being our third president. Thomas Jefferson has contributed greatly to the building of our government. He was a truly remarkable man who set forth the basic ideals and beliefs in government that have stayed the same for over two hundred years. In researching Thomas Jefferson I see a man who poetically expressed the fundamental purpose behind government that is, I feel, sometimes overlooked in today's political government and by the media.
By 1817 the great American experiment was in full swing. America was developing into an effective democratic nation. However as the democracy continued to grow, two opposing political parties developed, the Jeffersonian Republicans and the Federalists. The Jeffersonian Republicans believed in strong state governments, a weak central government, and a strict interpretation of the Constitution. The Federalists saw it differently. They opted for a powerful central government with weaker state governments, and a loose interpretation of the Constitution. The seemingly solid divide between Federalist and Republican would begin to blur during the presidencies of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. For, neither Republican president was able lead the nation with purely republican ideals.
When Alexis de Tocqueville traveled to America, he hoped to acquire a better understanding of the principles of democracy that the young country was exhibiting. Tocqueville had noticed his native country France slowly but surely moving towards those democratic standards He saw that over the past 700 years events seemingly beyond anyone’s control had been driving the nation towards that specific form of government. He believed that eventually the rest of France and the rest of the Western World would follow at least the principles of equality shown in the New World. However, he also noted that there were certain impediments slowing down the change to democracy. Tocqueville did not think that democracy was the right form of government for every
The U.S. Constitution has a unique history. Facing drafts and ratifications it was finally created under the founding fathers in 1787. The constitution is the foundation for the government we have today and influences almost every decision that government officials make. However, before the constitution was influencing, it was influenced. The political, economic, and diplomatic crises of the 1780s not only helped shape America, but also the provisions found the constitution.
Adding to this is the notion that the “richer are getting richer and the poor, poorer.” (Reich). When the income of the middle and lower class is either the same or shrinking while the income of the upper class is improving, the wealth gap is evident (Scott). What illustrates this is that today the 10% of richest Americans hold 40% of all the wealth in the U.S. (Scott). Another aspect of the wealthiest staying wealthy is the ability to pass down their wealth; otherwise known as inheritance. Even with estate taxes, the wealthy still manage to find loopholes where they don’t have to pay as much, or even at all. In other words, “lower income people pay a greater share of their income sales and payroll taxes than higher-income people” (Henchman). In America, the wealthy are being favored while everyone else has to pay.
In this example of political voice, John Oliver (2014) of Last Week Tonight, in the portion of the video shown of the show, he addresses the issue of income inequality in regards to the estate tax in America. Oliver (2014) states that the Estate tax does not apply to most people living in the U.S. due to the tax only applying to about .6 percent of the population in the United States according to the Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service (2013).The people who have to pay the estate tax, are exempt for the first five million dollars. Most importantly, the people who have to pay the “death tax” want to remove the estate tax, according to Oliver (2014). Everybody wants this tax to be removed because they assume the estate tax will
Taxation has always been a major controversy. Just like any major corporation, the government is constantly looking to raise revenue. The easiest and fairest way to do this is by taxing the people. However, how the people will be taxed is always an issue.