Well, it appears that tax payers are about to see past the hype and to the reality of the impact of Trump's tax cuts. This is the first round of returns since the tax cut that are actually impacted by the tax cut. So what are we seeing?
Economists predicted this. Many of us were solidly against Trump's approach. I suspect that this will become a significant issue in 2020. If the Dems are smart, they will pound on this theme. Popular support for addressing wealth disparity in this country is growing across the board. Unless the Reps wake up to it, I think 2020 is going to be a bad year for them.
- Tax returns are trending downwards (by about 8.4%). According to reports, the reduced returns are essentially wiping out the slight increase people saw in their paychecks.
- Less than 10% of the money corporations saved in taxes went to wages, bonues, or creation of new jobs. Most of the money going to employees went to them as a one-time bonus rather than a wage increase (which is a long-term commitment).
- Stock buybacks have increased by $934B while employee salaries have increased by $7.1B. The richest 10% own 84% of all stocks.
- Meanwhile, the tax cut that was supposed to "pay for itself" with booming economy growth is doing nothing of the kind. Instead, we are track for nearly a $1T deficit this year - and this is a good economy, when deficits should be shrinking.
Economists predicted this. Many of us were solidly against Trump's approach. I suspect that this will become a significant issue in 2020. If the Dems are smart, they will pound on this theme. Popular support for addressing wealth disparity in this country is growing across the board. Unless the Reps wake up to it, I think 2020 is going to be a bad year for them.
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