Tax Hikes for All?

By: Overtime Staff
Topics: Correspondent Candids

Lesley Stahl had good reason to be apprehensive before she interviewed David Stockman for this week's "60 Minutes" report on taxes: 30 years ago, she almost got him fired from his White House job! In this week's Correspondent Candid, "60 Minutes Overtime" takes you back to a time of feathered hair and over-sized glasses - the 1980s. Back then, Stahl was White House correspondent for CBS News and Stockman was the budget director for the Reagan administration.

Thirty years later, Stahl is still asking Stockman questions about taxes. And Stockman is still saying things that could get him trouble with the Republican leadership. According to Stockman, Americans need to pay more taxes. If drastic action isn't taken soon in this country, Stockman believes the federal government could be facing insolvency.

Watch Lesley Stahl's full report.

Listen to what Stockman has to say and then tell us what you think. Are you willing to pay more?

STAHL: Well, you've come out and said that all the Bush tax cuts should be eliminated. Not just on the rich, but on the middle class as well. Explain why.

STOCKMAN: Well, we just can't afford them. We couldn't afford them when they were adopted in 2001 and 2003. Since then, we've had two giant unfinanced wars, a huge bailout of Wall Street. This trillion-dollar stimulus program, and we have now created so much national debt, and such large permanent deficits that we're going to have to do some very difficult and painful things to close the gap, or we're going to destroy the economy, and render the federal government insolvent. As hard as that is to believe, we're edging in that direction.

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by jtbhoss November 15, 2010 3:20 AM EST: I Applaud your work here, but as a Washington resident, it is a little known fact that all revenue generated by the state goes into the general fund. From this general fund, monies are divvied out to the programs as the state seems fit. Monies have been ear-marked for education many times in the past, just to have them spent somewhere else. It seems to us that anytime the State wants money, they attach the heading for educational purposes. Nothing personal, but in general, I think we the public are tired of getting lied to. Also in INT. 1098 it states that the tax can be changed to what they feel is approperiate to their use in 2013. Congrats, now all of Washington state has an income tax, because the state can't budget their money. I.E. Voters did not approve new stadiums for sports, and our preferences would have been that these monies go towards education. Our wishes were over ridden by our Governor; Reply to this comment


by The1Bopper November 11, 2010 3:54 PM EST: I always wonder how the crowd, that wants to take America back to the "good times" can ignore the FACT that taxes were much higher back then. The people that are screaming about having to pay 39.5% for income taxes and 15% for pure non-work income from stocks and company profits, were paying between 70% and 90% back in those good old days. People making $250,000 a year,and up exponentially with multi-million and billionaires which works out to being $120 an HOUR to $48,0000 an hour need a tax cut, will NEVER EVER need nor use that extra 3% or 4% that they scream will break them. In the mean time people who work hard 50,60, and 70 years are being told, tough, get rid of Social security and Medicare, you don't need it. The times they really want to take us back to are mid-evil times, the really rich, the really poor, the private armies and no middle class, and EVERYTHING they proudly display as what they want does just that.; Reply to this comment


by wilmo94 November 10, 2010 12:12 AM EST: What is it you don't get about government corruption? After the Enron scandal one national journalist wrote," Corruption in Washington is epidemic, systemic, and total." Lets get real, the wealthy elite and their corporate special interest supporters rule every aspect of our so called government. Our nation has been warned several times in our history and no either pad attention or could do anything about it. FDR warned congress that when government becomes controlled by private money tyranny soon follows. Then Eisenhower gave his famous speech in 1962. We have rock solid proof the government is a fraud yet nothing changes and no one is held accountable. The Pentagon Papers, Iran Contra, The weapons Of Mass Destruction, one lie after the next, millions of people killed,etc. and you wonder why Americans are apathetic and cynical toward our political process,and why we don't vote? And we haven't even talked about TARP and the so called stimulus package that greased Wall Street and who knows who with zero accountability. A government economic system that promotes wealth and growth for those few at the top while the rest of us get squat, and if we complain that is "Class Warfare". So where is the "Change" we were promised? It was predicted it would happen. We are dying from within!; Reply to this comment


by SaveThenSpend November 9, 2010 10:25 AM EST: For the last 40 years the top executives of any company larger than 50 people on average have increased their share of the pie by a factor of at least 50. That means that the top 5 executives in a company of medium to large size take home a sizeable chunk of the money which otherwise would be reinvested in the company. Usually, by the time a company has grown to the size where it can afford to do this, the original owners have already been replaced at the rudder by the more financially and marketing savvy "experts". In order for these new helmsmen to maintain their standard of living, it almost becomes mandatory to replace the other 500-1000 local employees by cheaper employees from other places, hence outsourcing becomes almost mandatory.

It takes a certain mentality for people to willingly cooperate with this model, but that is what is happening on a grand scale now. Some don't know what they are doing, but most know it and their thinking is, that they are providing a service to the world. After all, aren't more people benefitting from the riches of their company, in countries where people were starving before? Americans are not going to starve, and they can always file for welfare. Or can they?; Reply to this comment


by artfulme November 8, 2010 6:30 PM EST: Taxes are the price we pay for civilization: Oliver Wendell Holmes.

Suggestion: each person builds his own roads, hires his own army, opens and runs his own hospital,hires his own police force,builds his own court system,hires his own food safety inspectors, hires his own postal office and carriers, hires his own air traffic safety overseers, hires his own weather barometers (private forecasters take their weather info from the govt), provide his own GUARANTEED retirement income and medical that prevents his and others' gramdmas from living on the street or dying early, etc., etc.

Meantime, the Wall Street-ers, banks, insurance companies and big oil buy the government by their political multi-millions to gain more tax breaks and subsidies that are then thrown on the middle class to make up the revenue.

The tax break offered by the Republicans, bankers, oil biggies,Wall Street-ers, and corporations are meant mainly for themselves, tossing a peanut to the middle class to keep them quiet, and their further exploitation of the middle-class whose real wages have declined during their c ontrol and policies while the wealthy get to enhance their billions of worth...

and get back those huge tax breaks in the form of Republican campaign contributions to keep the fraud on the people going.

And to PURCHASE OUR COUNTRY: See Rove's Billionaires' Club and The Chamber of Commerce spending millions to defeat Dems and purchase the country.; Reply to this comment


by jdev789 November 4, 2010 8:40 PM EDT: Great article pertaining to Mr. David Stockman's comments, very dangerous for both parties: the Democrats and the Republicans continuing to spend out of control including many benefits to various citizens while trying to keep taxes low. You MUST cut spending... something Ron Paul talked and warned about for years. Now with our debt numbers so high, the question is when will it collapses? Pertaining to the value of the US Dollar?; Reply to this comment

by zerxil November 4, 2010 12:14 PM EDT

Ok, here's the thing goberment. You needs to spend less than you make. the debit than magically disappears...conversation over.

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by zerxil November 4, 2010 12:24 PM EDT: New rule for the goberment. For the new budget, every new dollar you spend you have to cut 2 from the old budget. Oh and cut all federal government job pay in half.


by Ian_Ads November 7, 2010 10:59 PM EST: Seems simple, but that's wrong. If the government doesn't spend during a debt crisis such as we currently have, the economy contracts, and then collapses altogether. Like it did in 1929, under Herbert Hoover. It's how the money is spent that needs controlling. Infrastructure -- providing jobs and things we need -- good. Tax cuts for the wealthy -- bad.

by etrudeau06 November 3, 2010 2:48 PM EDT

Education: We have professors teaching 6 hours of class a week and making $200k a year. A generation ago, that was 12 hours and $100k. Wonder what is driving education costs. Thanks government for getting so involved in the education market.

Umemployment Insurance: People pay premiums and when needed receive benefits (26 weeks). Not socialism, just insurance. Just like when we insure our cars, our homes, and our health. But when beneifts are arbitrarily increased to 99 weeks. That is not an unemployment insurance benefit-- it is wwelfare. Fine, but call it what it is.

The problem is not entitlements. It is the way they are structured, like pyramid schemes, not only underfunded, but totally unfunded. Liberals like to complain that privatization would be risky. Really. It is risky to save asset to pay benefits later versus paying benefits now against the hope of raising taxes later? Unions, Public employees, teachers, and 401k holders all rely on market based securities for their pensions. Is that also too risky?

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by kevdo November 7, 2010 10:07 PM EST: not this professor. I have 20 years in, now at the rank of 'full' and tenure. I work full-time which translates to 50+ hours a week minimum - more when a project is slated. I have yet to make more than $52K.

I think you have some of the administrators confused with the faculty. Yes - those sharks could use some major salary cuts for what little they do and how often they screw things up. Also, the salary at my public university comes from state coffers, not federal.

Please drop the stupid socialism stuff. Your example does not even come close to what real socialism is.

You need to be far more specific with regard to which 'entitlements' are unfunded. You make grand assumptions and none of it applies to me although I seem to be the very person you are using as an example.


by etrudeau06 November 3, 2010 2:39 PM EDT: If we abandon capitlism, what will we do? Capitalism requires capital formation. When you tax investment to pay for consumption you eat away at your capital base. No capital formation means no jobs, no productivity gains and falling wages.

This is the system liberals have created. The governor of Wasihngton asks if it is immoral to cut consumption to someone in respite care. It is. It is also immoral to consume the productive capacity that will provide the resources to cover respite care for two or ten people in the next generation.

The system stahl wants forces people to depend on government to take away capital from wealthy people to pay for consumption today. That is why the Chinese are acquiring all our assets. They save money and consume less than they make. Our poor and middle class seem to think you can consume more than you make. And they want to use the goeverment to force others to pay for this choice.

By the way, the Chinese save 35% of everything the make. This is why they are growing at 10% per year and taking all our jobs.; Reply to this comment


by dougfromeagan November 3, 2010 3:35 AM EDT: David is a Keynesian Fool! He was then and he is now.
If John Maynard Keynes, was so right and Reagan so wrong, Why did spending us into bankruptcy by Obama and Bush not replenish the economy?

David, how can robbing Peter to pay Paul ever work? If it does, surely we would see it in our economy today. We don't. You are a useful idiot.

Hey Keynes! I got your multiplier right here!; Reply to this comment

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