**TAX REFORM COMMISSION? YEAH \... RIGHT.**

The president\'s so-called [tax reform
commission](http://www.taxreformpanel.gov/) telegraphed its intentions
several months ago when members stated that they were not going to
recommend a full reform of our federal tax system, rather they were
going to recommend some incremental reforms. The The FairTax Book hit
the book stores and debuted at No. 1 on the New York Times Bestseller\'s
list. Politicians and other Beltway denizens told co-author Congressman
John Linder that the success of The FairTax Book was a certain
indication that the people of this country were in the mood for
wholesale reform. Who knew?

Now we\'re starting to get an indication of what the tax reform
commission is going to recommend. It\'s very simple. Tax increases, not
tax reform.

First: The commission is going to recommend that [the cap on the home
mortgage interest deduction be
reduced](http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-tax12oct12,0,5995816.story?coll=la-home-headlines).
Currently you can deduct interest on home loans up to one million
dollars. The new limit is likely to be \$350,000. This means that all
interest on home loans about \$350,000 will not be deductible. The
result? A tax increase for people who own more than \$350,000 on their
homes. Now this won\'t bother most Americans because they believe that
anyone who owns a home valuable enough to stand as security for a loan
in excess of \$350,000 is rich, and as we all know there really should
be no limit to the taxes that evil rich people pay. Political survival
rule No. 1: You can never go wrong raising taxes on the rich.

Second: Another tax increase. Right now your employer can deduct the
cost of any health insurance it pays for on your behalf. The tax reform
commission wants to limit that deduction. Does this amount to a tax
increase on businesses? In a sense, yes. But, as you know, business
don\'t pay taxes, they pass the taxes and the tax increases down the
line of commerce until they end up embedded in the final retail price of
goods and services. So this is a tax increase, but it\'s an increase on
all of us.

The panel calls these ideas \"tough choices\" that must be made to allow
for the elimination of the hated Alternative Minimum Tax. The truth is
that they\'re not tough choices at all. They\'re the easy choices \...
the easy political choices. First, as for the mortgage deduction choice,
it will affect only the hated rich, so no political danger there. As for
the taxing of health care benefits, most Americans \-- and were talking
a huge percentage here \-- don\'t understand the concept of embedded
taxes in the retail price of goods and services, so this is another
politically safe choice. People will actually believe that this only
raises taxes on businesses, so no harm no foul.

As for the FairTax \-\-- a national sales tax? Well, Vice-Chairman John
Breaux, a Democrat, says that the panel has decided not to endorse the
idea. K-Street influence, perhaps?

It seems that the president\'s tax reform panel is paying attention to
the political equation here, not to the interests of the American
people. These so-called tax reform ideas do nothing but protect
politicians and lobbyists. There is nothing here for the people. Sure,
the panel members will say that they are going to recommend getting rid
of the Alternative Minimum Tax. Big Deal. With passage of the FairTax
not only do they get rid of the AMT, but the income tax, death tax,
Social Security tax and Medicare tax as well.

These \"reforms\" do nothing to reduce the hideous tax compliance costs
in this country. In fact, we\'ll probably see tax compliance costs go
up. Wealthy homeowners will have to look for ways to overcome the loss
of their mortgage interest deduction, and businesses will spend money
trying to find a way to overcome the increased taxes from the loss of
deductibility on health care.

These \"reforms\" do nothing to bring American businesses back home.
When Chrysler and Daimler Benz merged they headquartered in Germany
because the tax burden would be at least 20% higher if they were
headquartered in the United States. So, the merger became
Daimler-Chrysler. There is nothing in these reform proposals that would
cause any discussion on becoming Chrysler-Daimler. The FairTax would
make America the world\'s largest tax haven. The panel\'s \"reforms\"
only increase the burden on American businesses.

These \"reforms\" do nothing to bring the \$10 trillion-plus U.S.
dollars that are invested overseas back home to work in our own country.
These dollars will continue to work overseas where American taxes won\'t
drag them down. Those dollars will stay overseas. Nothing here calls
them home.

These \"reforms\" will not allow you to invest with no tax consequences.
These \"reforms\" will not allow you to save money or to pay to educate
your children (or yourself) with no tax consequences.

These \"reforms\" are totalmente mierda del toro. (OK .. You get the
idea) I want you to consider a thought that my friend Bugsy (the
world\'s best talk-radio consultant, Greg Moceri) put in my ear this
morning. Is this a preemptive strike by the tax reform panel? They know
of the success of the FairTax idea, they know that the book is staying
at the top of the bestseller\'s lists \.... are they sending a message?
\"No way, people. No way we are going to lose that much power to the
American people. We\'ve worked for too many years to subject the
American people to our money-hungry government behemoth, and we\'re not
going to let that slide away just because some businessmen spent over
\$20 million developing a tax scheme that empowers the people.