They sent thousands of tea bags to Congress and won the day. Reducing the singles tax, however, created the marriage tax. The question now is whether we really want to re-create penalties for, say, single heads of households. The heated argument against the marriage penalty may be just a moral cover story for tax cuts. Especially tax cuts for the well off.
Every politician can stand up and stake a courageous stand for marriage.
But there is no evidence that droves of Americans are eschewing marriage for money. Some couples really do get hurt by the marriage penalty, especially low earners. As two-worker families become the norm, there are good reasons for rethinking how we treat the second earner. While the dearly beloved are assembled, one last thought. The tax code with its elaborate system of deductions, credits, exemptions, and brackets is more of a balancing act than marriage itself.