Paterson, Silver Differ on Taxing the Wealthy

As he grapples with a $15.4 billion budget deficit for this year and next, Governor Paterson voiced his opposition to taxing the rich. According to the Post, Paterson explained, "What I'm saying is if you tax the rich right now, while the economy is disintegrating, you're going to lose jobs and you're also going to lose from the tax base as people leave the state. In my opinion, you're [compounding] the problem, not eradicating it. I don't think that taxing the rich is the best way to go right now." (That's also a refrain Mayor Bloomberg has made.) On the other hand, Assembly Leader Sheldon Silver is all for taxing upper income brackets: In remarks to the United Teachers Federation, Silver said, "Clearly, as a state, we need to ask ourselves if the best way to balance the budget is to make deep cuts in our classrooms or to ask the wealthiest New Yorkers to contribute a little bit more?" Which makes the Legislature's and Paterson's apparent agreement on a budget (press conference happening in Albany now) more interesting!

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By Jen Chung in News on February 3, 2009 2:45 PM

Comments [rss]

thefacts

No, no. Read the story well before commenting.

Wealthy = anyone earning over half a mill a year.

Surely, you agree with that definition.

SimonLok

why should any politician be against taxing your income? From all the news of Obama's recent democratic picks for his cabinet, it seems none of them actually pay tax themselves.

Clarice City

In other words, he doesn't want to tax the people who fund his campaigns.

NannyState

Let's see: what's going to generate more revenue? Taxing the rich, or taxing indian cigarettes and clothes that retail over $110? Paterson should legalize pot and then tax it because he apparently smokes enough of it to support the Acapulco cartel.

Gothampc

Paterson is fast learning you can't tax the rich because, if Obama's administration is any indication, the rich aren't paying taxes to begin with.

EastRiver

I'd be all for taxing the rich if they stopped defining rich as a few hundred thousand in income. God forbid they introduce a few more tax brackets. No reason a doctor and a CEO should be in the same tax bracket.

Politburo

Good point.. and one that I don't think I've seen much of, even though it's simple and makes sense.

Felix Hoenikker

The uberwealthy are powerful enough to buy influence to keep that from happening. The 'somewhat' wealthy aren't powerful enough to do that nor numerous (or gullible) enough to pander to for votes.

REALITY CHECK

Paterson seems to not understand that trickle-down economics doesn't work in real life. Trickle-down economics failed because the incentive for the rich to reinvest in jobs is far less than the incentive for the rich to invest in speculation futures so they can squeeze more money out of doing nothing, so they can buy their tenth luxury condo. Trickle-down economics relies far too heavily on the goodwill of the rich. This financial collapse is the greatest proof that handing the rich too much control of our economic well-being will end in disaster for us all.

Think2wice

Oh, you nailed it.

JacqueMehoff

he now sounds like bloomberg.

Steven

I used to be a big fan of Patterson, but the past few months he is really turning into a huge douche head.

REALITY CHECK

I agree with you. Paterson seems to be veering away from the Democratic party platform, or sound economics, for that matter.

whitecastlerock

This city is turning into Bartertown... 2 men enter one man leave

yg

How about "stop putting people in prison for marijuana possession." Period.

ides_of_march

How about going after welfare and medicaid fraud, and cutting off public assistance to anybody in the country illegally? It's not a silver bullet but it would help.

Also, I'd stop putting people in prison for marijuana possesion who have no record of violence. It's a waste of money and just helps turn annoying but essentially harmless dope-heads into hardened criminals.