I've been working on a case to challenge Mark Levin on his radio show.
Mark has been on a rant about Trump's tariff talk, likening it to Smoot-Hawley in Hoover days. Free Trade!!!!
When our founders faced the issue of how to support the small idea government they were really afraid to turn loose on the world, for fear it would become what it is today, they were still smarting from British taxes and tariffs, and anti-smuggling laws that essentially meant colonists had to buy from the British Far East Trading Company, or go without. They rejected the notion of "income tax" and put it down that the fed money would come from tariffs. Levin thinks that's stupid.
Actually, "income tax" levied by the federal government is a tariff on domestic labor and domestic production. It is an abhorrent idea. Looking in our taxpayers guide published by the IRS today, they reject outright all the ideas anyone has come up with to challenge their taxes, and have levied a $5000 fine on anyone who dares whisper the words.
Seen as a tariff on domestic production/labor, it is clear that "Free Trade" with foreign nations can never be "Fair Trade". We've already shot ourselves in the foot, maybe in the head, too. Sure there are governments with higher tariffs on their production, like European nations generally. But combined with all the costs on payroll, all the costs of regulations, environmental and labor compliance, etc etc etc, it is not "fair trade" if we impose tariffs upon our own goods at the point of production, and give international corporations incentives for starting businesses overseas as well.
sure we have notions about people who play by the rules, like Mitt and Green, to avoid taxes using special little deals congress has given special interests. I don't agree it's immoral for people to play by the rules. What is immoral is the income tax.
Sure we could do a national sales tax, just have the States collect it as they do sales taxes now, or a flat tax, but a tariff would really be a good way to retire the income tax. Consumers pay all the taxes, and the consumer would have a fair idea of what he's paying every day, as he goes about his life. It would eliminate the fantasy that government can just print money without inflationary effects on prices, or that people don't pay for everything.