Welcome to your weekend open thread. We’re in the first weekend of the O’pocalypse. How are you enjoying the “new” Delaware? It’s certainly keeping Delaware Liberal busy! So, is there someone you want to talk about other than Christine O’Donnell?
The New York Times shows the wingnut talking point that letting Bush’s tax cuts for the rich expire would hurt small business to be a lie. Only 3% of small businesses would even qualify.
“It’s a body blow to the small-business community,” said Grover Norquist, president of the conservative advocacy group Americans for Tax Reform.
Despite that emotional appeal, Internal Revenue Service statistics indicate that only 3 percent of small businesses would be subject to the higher tax, and many studies of previous tax increases suggest that it would have minimal impact on hiring.
According to the Joint Committee on Taxation, 97 percent of all businesses owners do not earn enough to be subject to the higher rates, which would be levied on income of over $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for families.
Even among the 750,000 businesses that would be subjected to the higher rates in 2011, many are sole proprietors — a classification so amorphous it can include everyone from corporate executives who earn income on rental property to entertainers, hedge fund managers and investment bankers. Because 80 percent of America’s 32 million businesses are sole proprietorships, 90 percent of the tax cut would be derived from businesses without employees.
Gee, a Republican talking point is false! What are the odds?
This is a bit of head-scratcher. Lisa Murkowski is running a write-in campaign for U.S. Senate in Alaska.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R) announced Friday night she is launching a write-in campaign for re-election — a last-ditch effort to keep the seat she’s held since being appointed by her father, former Gov. Frank Murkowski (R), in 2002.
The announcement sets up a three-way race between Murkowski, Democrat Scott McAdams and Republican Joe Miller, who defeated Murkowski in the Aug. 24 primary by 2,006 votes and has the full support of the National Republican Senatorial Committee and party leaders.
“Alaskans deserve a fighter in the United States Senate who will always stand up for Alaska, who understands our great potential, and has the experience, the respect and the seniority to accomplish that,” Murkowski said. “I am that Senator.”
Murkowski also took a shot at former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, saying she is “one Republican woman who won’t quit on Alaska.”
Meow! I love that shot at Palin. Apparently the only person to win a U.S. Senate seat as a write-in candidate was Strom Thurmond in 1954.