Comments on: A modest proposal

By: Michael Tobis

Michael Tobis — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 21:57:14 +0000

Good idea; they should also have the least effective health coverage they have allowed to be legal by any of their votes, for the same reason.

Similarly, state legislators’ children and grandchildren should attend the worst schools in their state that their votes would support.

I think you have latched on to a useful principle.

By: Quincy

Quincy — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 18:23:35 +0000

Leigh, if I had ever heard of a legislator talk about paying “our fair share”, I might tend to agree with you. The language is telling, though. When a legislator talks of people paying a fair share, it is always “they” and “their”, never “us” and “our”. That’s what I object to; and that’s where I think legislators should have a skin in the game.

By: Leigh Caldwell

Leigh Caldwell — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 17:23:29 +0000

I think most Congressional representatives are in or near the highest tax brackets, or will be once they leave office.

The deeper point though, is that it is quite possible someone might want to pass a higher tax rate, _conditional_ on it being applied across the board (to themselves as well as others). If it fails to pass (or is subsequently revoked), it doesn’t follow that those who voted for it should have to pay the higher rate if nobody else does.

By: Quincy

Quincy — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 16:22:11 +0000

Yes and no. A lawmaker who would not be in the “rich” tax bracket can vote for tax rates he or she personally would never pay. Additionally, not all tax bills pass. If the bills fail, the people who vote for them should still be held responsible for their votes.

By: Leigh Caldwell

Leigh Caldwell — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 14:23:36 +0000

Presumably as elected officials already pay income tax, they DO make the same sacrifices – in this respect at least – as everyone else.