Here's an interesting read that I wish I could take credit for.  I know libertarians would rather have 0 spending on anything, but I'm not sure that type of political position is even something people want.  I mean, look at Trump.  He's no libertarian...  You're gonna have to decide what you want to spend money on, and where you want to cut spending.  Also, based on the fact that the recession still hasn't rebounded to where revenues used to be, tax increases or loophole closures also have to happen.  These are all serious matters that need to be thought through.  The idea that we're gonna get rid of the IRS or that the government is the problem (I'm lookin' at you Lyn' Ted and Glen Beck) is nice, but it's not realistic.  

 

"The Obama administration’s deficit-reducing proposals include $955 billion from curbing “inefficient tax breaks for the wealthy” and closing loopholes for high- income households. It also includes $375 billion in savings on federal health-care spending, in the process extending the financial viability of Medicare by 15 years. And it assumes $170 billion over 10 years from an overhaul of immigration law, primarily from a wave of new taxpayers that would result from a bill resembling one the Senate passed in 2013.



 

Tax loopholes targeted for closure include one that allows wealthy individuals, in households making more than $250,000 a year, to avoid a 3.8 percent tax imposed under the Affordable Care Act by passing some investment income through partnerships or businesses.



Jason Furman, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, said some wealthy individuals would pay more taxes, but he said that would be because of closing loopholes rather than raising rates.



 

However, Obama’s budget includes a raft of controversial tax proposals that have drawn Republican fire in the past. They include taxing capital gains and carried interest at the same rates as regular income; imposing the “Buffett tax,” which would set a minimum tax rate of 30 percent on people who earn more than $1 million; restoring estate tax rates and thresholds to 2009 levels; and imposing a fee on financial institutions."



https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/...story.html

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