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Wednesday, May 31, 2006
You Can't Make This Stuff Up...
Yet another reason not to repeal the estate tax comes to us today from the House Government Reform Committee Minority Office. Yesterday, Ranking Member of the committee Henry Waxman (D-CA) released an analysis showing the huge tax windfalls that estate tax repeal would give to the families of the senior executives of six major oil companies - as if they didn't have enough money already.
The analysis finds the six executives would save a total of $211 million from repeal of the estate tax, with former ExxonMobil chief Lee R. Raymond saving the most by far - $164 million. Raymond recently grabbed headlines for an outrageous $400 million retirement package he received from ExxonMobil.
Last year, a similar analysis done by the committee showed how President Bush, Vice President Cheney, and 11 of the president's cabinet members would save potentially $344 million under an estate tax repeal.
And if you still need convincing the movement to repeal the estate tax is being driven by a very small, completely self-interested group of disgustingly wealthy individuals, look no further than a new analysis from United for a Fair Economy and Public Citizen, showing how 18 wealthy families have poured tens of millions of dollars into a lobbying and public relations campaign to repeal the estate tax - an act that would save them a combined $71 BILLION.
If you are outraged at the greed and selfishness of these of people who seem to have no limit to the lengths they will go to hoard more wealth, email your Senator immediately and tell them to preserve the estate tax.
Check out this column, Estate Tax Lunacy, in today's Washington Post. Harold Meyerson succinctly sums up the estate tax situation while disspelling some of the most egregious myths about the tax.
Posted by Adam Hughes
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