“The U.S. Is Alone” And Why It Hurts
“The tax rate of 35 percent is impossible to provide an incentive to the large corporations, that have $1.7 trillion offshore, to put their money back in the United States.” – Frederick W. Smith
In March of 2011, Pfizer Pharmaceutical CEO Ian Read told The Wall Street Journal, “There should be a tax rate that allows us to compete… in the global marketplace.”
Later that year, H.R. 25, “The FairTax Act” co-author and economist Dan Mastromarco testified before the Joint Economic Committee that America’s corporations were paying “a national statutory marginal [tax] rate of 35 percent, which masks the fact that the return on capital is taxed repeatedly. These rates impose efficiency costs of as much as $728 billion.”
Mastromarco added, “The U.S. is alone in applying its punishing rates – the highest in the OECD and 50 percent higher than the average OECD rate of 23 percent — to domestic and foreign earnings alike.”
Congress failed to heed these and other warnings and as a result, a flood of companies has continued move their production and headquarters operations outside the United States.
In fact, after 165 years, America’s pharmaceutical giant Pfizer is merging with British competitor AstraZeneca and moving their headquarters offshore to avoid our punitive, corrupt and totally politicized income tax system; a tax system that Congress continues to protect with the fervor of a mother bear standing guard over her cubs. A system Pfizer itself helped create with an army of the best loophole lobbyists their earnings could buy.
Adding insult to injury, this week Financial Times made national news with their headline story, “China poised to pass US as world’s largest economic super power this year.”
And yet, Congress continues blindly advocating politically polarizing, pro-income tax economic policies that are driving this nation and her people straight into the economic ditch.
There is a tough love solution to this problem that eliminates the primary enabler of Washington’s lust for power, greed and control. That solution – the FairTax® Plan.
The FairTax eliminates all forms of taxation on income, funds the federal government from a national sales tax on new goods and services only, and provides eligible taxpayers with 12 monthly, Prebate checks to purchase essential goods and services tax-free.
This provision provides a significant windfall for low-income families who will take home the full spending power of their entire paycheck. The FairTax also disbands, defunds and eliminates the IRS in its entirety.
Just as importantly, the FairTax will negate corporate America’s need to move offshore in order to avoid America’s punitive tax code.
It is past time that corporate executives turn their focus away from the special interests, loophole gravy train of the past and present, and towards the economic boon they can enjoy when the FairTax is enacted.
This is where you have a tremendous opportunity to make a major difference for the FairTax campaign.
You are corporate America’s customers – you buy their products and services. And unlike our Congress that only seems to respond to special interests and large donors, corporations do listen to the lifeblood of revenue – the customer.
Think about your favorite products and or services and make a list of your five most favorite, publicly traded corporations. Go to the company’s website investor page and you will find the name and mailing address for their executives and board of directors.
Take a few moments and write some good, old-fashioned snail mail notes. Share why you support the FairTax and why they should too. Send them a copy of Dan Mastromarco’s white paper, “The FairTax: The Key to Restoring America’s International Competitiveness,” which you can download on the right hand side of this newsletter under “Featured Document”. The mere fact that you send a note through the mail will get their attention.
And let us know if you get a response. If possible, send us a copy of your outgoing note. You can send this to info@fairtax.org or AFFT, PO Box 27487, Houston, TX 77227-7487.
It is indeed painful to read today’s business headlines. America is hungry. She needs jobs, she needs her corporations brought home and she needs our getting the FairTax enacted.
