Cutting the Crap on Paul Ryan’s Lies on Twitter

This will be a quick one… Speaker of the House Paul Ryan Tweeted this out just now:

An American company taxed at 44.6% here would only be taxed at 15% in Canada. How do we expect our businesses to compete globally?

— Paul Ryan (@SpeakerRyan) July 7, 2017

As you can see, lying is a GOP tradition, not just limited to Donald Trump.

First of all, businesses have been growing and becoming more profitable for years. Throughout the Obama Administration, corporations reported ever growing profits. Put it this way; we have seen more than 85 months of continuous job growth and corporations don’t create jobs if they’re not making money.

That is not to say we don’t need a new tax code. We do. However, no one should have any confidence in the Republican Party to create one that is fair to everyone. Given their record, they are more likely to create a tax code that favors the wealthy and creates a permanent deficit bubble. And frankly, it is also not likely that the current GOP can get its shit together long enough to create any tax code. They have shown an ability to do little more than name post offices and cancel some of President Obama’s last executive orders. So, he’s not leading a major change in the tax code; it just ain’t happening.

But that thing about taxes in the US and Canada? That’s just pure bullshit.

I asked Speaker Ryan to name me one corporation that paid 44.6% in taxes here. You’d be hard pressed to find anyone who paid 44.6%, even when you combine federal and state tax rates.

The TRUTH:

Yes, the top marginal tax rate in the US is 39.1%. That is the highest in the world, but it’s not 44.6%. So that’s a lie.

Also, Canada’s top marginal tax rate is 38%. Which is only slightly lower than the same rate here. It’s not 15%.

In fact, when you compare effective tax rates between the United States and other comparable countries, our tax rates are in line with everyone else’s. The US tax rate on profits from new investments is 24%, whereas it averages 21% in the other countries in the G-7. On profits, corporations pay 29%, as opposed to 28% in rest of the G-7. Certainly, it’s not enough to force CEOs to slit their wrists. (Source)

The effective average tax rate in Canada, by the way, is 26.5%. (Source) Not significantly lower than the US and certainly not 15%.

It is definitely time for a new tax code, but we really should put Democrats in and let them do it. It’s more likely to be fair.