Reagan's Attorney General Calls Out Fiscal Cliff Fallacy

Written by Dominique Feldman on . Posted in Business/Finance

Ed Meese

In a discussion with Fox News' Sean Hannity, former Reagan Attorney General Ed Meese examined some of the fallacies and misperceptions surrounding the Fiscal Cliff deal and the tax burden borne by higher income earners in America.  As Meese ably pointed out, contrary to popular belief, the wealthy in America not only pay their fair share of taxes, they pay well beyond their share.  The top 1% of earners in the U.S. bring in 17% of income, but pay more than 37% of income taxes collected.  

Meese also clarified the fact that, despite the promise by President Obama that tax hikes would be exclusively for upper income earners in the Fiscal Cliff deal, ALL earners across the board are paying increased taxes in 2013, and will have already begun to see some of those increases by now.  This is because of increases in payroll taxes, as well as other taxes associated with Obamacare.  In addition, despite the promised balance between tax increases and spending cuts from the Obama Administration, the actual Fiscal Cliff deal included over $600 billion in tax hikes compares to only roughly $15 billion in spending cuts.

As the former Attorney General pointed out, these skewed outcomes have come to pass in part because Republicans have failed to point out the inequalities in the tax system as it is, and have neglected to rebut the specious arguments made by the President, that the so-called rich are not paying enough.  Meese agreed with a statement by Rush Limbaugh, that President Obama is attempting to be as transformational a President as Ronald Reagan was, but with the transformation moving in the opposite direction.  As former Attorney General Meese noted, the missed rebuttal opportunities by the Republican Party against the President's statements played a substantial part in election results last November.  He also made the very scathing point that a major difference between Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama is that Ronald Reagan always told the truth.

One of the truths that isn't being revealed clearly enough to the American people is the simple fact that, if Americans want to see the continued increase in the size and activity of the Federal Government, they are going to have to look forward to a very significant increase in tax burden across the board.  As Meese said, paraphrasing Margaret Thatcher, this is the main problem with socialism:  Sooner or later you run out of other people's money.  These inconvenient truths need to be asserted much more vigorously by Republican leadership, both Meese and Hannity agreed, before President Obama succeeds in transforming the American economy into something resembling Greece.

AutoNation Thriving In Sour Economy

Written by Dominique Feldman on . Posted in Business/Finance

During a time when the rest of the economy was literally bottoming out, AutoNation was at the top of its game. ‘08-’09 was their “finest hour” because they had incredible operating strength, rooted in long-term strategy. While so many companies are desperately seeking to meet the sales projections of the next quarter, AutoNation was carrying out its carefully crafted strategy with a focus on a 5 to 6 year plan. 

Passing through the doorways in the sleek, modern façade and entering the brightly-lit, spacious, and stylishly-furnished showroom of the Maroone Chevrolet of Fort Lauderdale dealership, immediately one recognizes the company’s prosperity, and gets a clear understanding of why AutoNation is the only investment grade rated public automotive retailer. As I walked in and prepared for the forthcoming interview, I was immediately greeted by courteous and professional sales staff, who were impeccably dressed in business wear emblazoned with the brand logo.

It was reminiscent of the 1950’s era, when service station attendants would run out the instant you pulled in. Taking a seat in the very comfortable customer lounge, one of the first things you realize is that there are no walls between you and the extensive, yet visually arresting, inventory. This recently-renovated dealership, along with its sister AutoNation facilities across the country, was a revelation and reassurance to the retail automotive industry. In that open and relaxing lounge, I had the opportunity to speak with the men who are mainly responsible for that prosperity.