Ben Shapiro - Flat Tax vs Progressive Tax

[sylvio]

at least 20 countries have implemented flat taxes and they have registered a lot more economic growth/wage growth compared to countries with progressive taxation.
So the main reason why i support flat tax is because it works

[supreme]

Is it just me or do people who are afraid to enter a higher bracket are often the same people who tell the poor to "pick themselves up by the bootstraps" and stop whining how lazy they are? An interesting irony.

[ixyhytr]

I say no income taxes of any kind. I suggest a flat federal tax like sales tax. Tax on what you spend not what you earn.

[bigb]

I have always thought a flat tax would be best - zero deductions. The only assignment for a Federal income tax should be to raise funds for essential Government functions. The way we do it now influences behavior as well.

[jeremypayne]

I have a brother who thinks anyone who makes millions should pay 90% in taxes, but doesn't realize that the moment that happens, those people won't be rewarded for their hard work. They'd stop working 16 hours a day because the incentive is gone, and then that tax money goes away.

[aasthashah]

Diminishing marginal utility of income

[chriss]

They wouldn't take a flat tax which would be better because no one could cheat. The scum bags would get the money as soon as you get paid and you would keep the rest. The issue is we wouldn't need the irs and they couldn't penalize and ruin peoples lives for making a mistake or cheating if it was a flat tax and taken every time you got paid.

[rossmartenak]

The United States SHOULD be on a Flat Tax system of taxation. Every business and individual should pay the same percentage of income tax. This would eliminate the overly complicated and unecessary tax system we have in place in the US currently. First off, if all businesses and wage earners were proportionally taxed, it would be more fair to all. It would be a win-win situation. This would eliminate tax loop-holes. No more tax breaks of ANY kind for ANYBODY, would be a more fair and a refreshing change.The IRS would become strictly a Tax Collection Agency, thus able to operate with probably about 20% of the personnel it employs today. There'd be no 'April 15', as taxes would be deducted all-along-the-way, no more high-priced Tax Accountants or Tax Lawyers would be needed. With Flat Taxation, there would be a drastic reduction in paperwork and no yearly changes in the tax laws.

[baseballification]

I’ll take a flat tax if every person and entity pays 35 percent
The irs is reformed completely
The people have a direct choice in what we fund
TurboTax and competitors are gone

Some may say that we’d become easily destabilized
I think we’re already easily destabilized

So is our answer to do none of that because we like not being in charge?

[jeremypayne]

I've spoken to people who want a progressive tax, insist that they don't blame the rich for society's problems, but also say that it's impossible to make millions morally. Make it make sense.

[ClayShentrup]

He's accidentally right, for the wrong reason. If you combine a flat marginal tax rate with a lump sum refundable tax credit AKA UBI, then your effective marginal tax rates are highly progressive, but you still have a flat marginal tax rate. Ben's trying to make a "moral" argument when he needs to be making a mathematical one.

[fjorddenierbear]

The people who think progressive taxation is a good idea should probably not even have influence

[ocdave]

The moral argument is not on the side of a flat tax, neither pay increases by percentage. Both should be based on a standard of living index, do the math. Funny how government municipalities use across the board percentages for pay increases, do the math. Dont confuse a working income and resource positioning income. There are people who never lift a finger who have huge incomes, they call that working. If Ben is a proponant of the judao-christian ethic then stand behind all of those teachings, not cherry pick.

[ocdave]

Talk is cheap, Ben do the math, show your work on a pie chart, math doesent lie!

[BayouBarth]

Ben is either lying or doesn't understand corporate taxes. Those taxes on profits, not revenue or on capital expenses. Your tax rate doesn't rise because you hire more employees. On the contrary, you can lower your tax exposure by hiring employees (because that's an expense).

[joshuamclean]

Personally I think “flat tax” is a bad name.

Most “flat tax” systems are not actually a flat rate for all, but a single tax bracket with an exemption. Meaning the first X amount of income is exempt, then after that amount you pay a flat tax rate. This keeps things simple and efficient, and does not penalize growth or increasing income.

The moral reason for a marginal tax is that higher income people have more disposable income, meaning 20% for a low income family is a HUGE amount when theyre barely scraping by, but is much smaller of an impact in terms of quality of life for someone with a million dollar income even though the amojnt of taxes would be significantly more than what the low income family even earns altogether in a year. So the burden is felt anlot more.

The exemption offsets this burden but still keeps the simplicity and benefits of a flat tax.

Hope this helps someone else too!

[Sebby_]

Tax is a necessary evil. I’m sorry you want to add another car to collection but someone needs life saving cancer treatment.

[homergee]

A flat tax ensures the slaves can never rise up pharaoh

[dcwinebuff]

How about we tax the poor. Millions of lower income Americans (and illegal non-citizens) pay 0 percent in income taxes, yet they take the biggest chunk of the social services (crime, welfare, unemployment, out of wedlock childbirths, etc.). Stop all this "tax the rich" nonsense. If we didn't have rich people paying taxes, creating jobs, being entrepreneurs, and donating to charitable causes, then the poor would starve. Let the poor pay their fair share.