Prioleau Alexander: We Did That!

Right-wingers are so clueless (probably more accurately duped) about how Corporations work and how the super-wealthy have been using them to abuse the country for decades.

In the 1950s when according to MAGA America was Great (you know women barefoot and pregnant, darkies in the field and scrubbing toilets where they belonged, and gay people in the closet or having their ass kicked if they were not and no Mexicans) the top marginal Corporate Tax rate was 90%+- under a Republican President. Why? Because back then they understood that the purpose of Corporations was to allow broad investment in the American Economy by the public and for investors to be insulated from liability for the actions of management. They were never intended to be a tax dodge for what at the time would have been hundred millionaires but are now billionaires. The reason the taxes were so high is the Corporations were given a Dividend-paid deduction. That meant they paid little or no tax as long as they distributed their profits to the shareholders. The shareholders paid the tax at their rate. Republicans and their mega-wealthy donors changed all that.

Today the richest 1% of Americans own 53% of all publicly traded stock in the US. The next richest 9% own 36% of all publically traded stock in the US. The poorest 50% of Americans own less than 1% of the publicly traded stock in America. That only leaves 9% more or less for middle-income, average working-class Americans. So as you can see the reason for Corporations is failing. When you give a massive tax cut to corporations you are giving a massive tax cut to the richest 1% of Americans. That is why Trump constantly brags to his Mar-a-Lago buddies that he gave “them” a massive tax cut. The richest Americans stash all their profits and wealth inside the corporations they control because Corporate tax rates are low and deductions are generous. When they do decide they need money they sell their stock at tax-advantaged Capital Gains rates. This is why Warren Buffet said he paid a lower percentage of taxes on his income than his bookkeeper. The system has been rigged for the super-rich.

Now for the BS argument that if you increase corporate tax rates, the corporations will increase costs or flee the country. Donald Trump and the Republicans gave large Corporations huge tax cuts at a time when they were making record profits. Did they lower prices? No. They just made more profit and used that to consolidate the ownership of corporate America even more. Giant Oil Companies are pumping more oil than they ever have and making higher profits than they ever have, but gas prices are Biden’s fault. Drug Companies are making higher profits than they ever have, but drug prices are Biden’s fault. If companies are making more profits than ever and did not cut prices when they got a tax cut, why would they need to raise prices when taxes go up to where they were before they got the cut? And if they want to move out of the Country why didn’t they move out before? Could it be because they need access to the American Market and there is nowhere else to go that they don’t risk loss to that market? Manufacturing is returning to the US at a rapid pace since Biden took office. There are geopolitical reasons for that re-shoring, and that is not going to change anytime soon.

I can’t waste my time debunking all the other bogus right-wing made-up talking points you have in this article, because anyone with a brain can figure that out for themselves. Even Trump knows they are lies, but he is willing to feed the sheep, whatever they want to eat.