Burnt Orange Report

From the Department of "Revenue Enhancement"

By Jim Dallas

President Bush, State of the Union address, two weeks ago:

We must not jeopardize our economic strength by increasing payroll taxes

Bush today (as reported by the AP):

Bush, meanwhile, said he has not ruled out raising taxes on those who earn more than $90,000 a year to help bolster Social Security's finances. Under the current system, payroll taxes are paid only on the first $90,000 in wages.

Actually, this is not a truly awfuk policy flip-flop, but it perplexes me; if the solution is to tax the rich, then why not, you know, tax the rich? The current general revenue budget deficit... which could be laregely closed by repealing the President's tax cuts for the top one percent... is probably the single biggest threat to Social Security's long-term future right now.