Senator Obama’s Tax Plan to Make America More Like France

The presumptive Democratic nominee is getting some negative attention for his plan to kill the 2003 tax rate reductions, which would boost the top tax rate by 4.6 percentage points. But a far more radical proposal is his scheme to extend Social Security payroll taxes so they apply to income above $250,000, a change that would increase the top marginal tax rate by about 12 percentage points. In a new video being distributed by the Center for Freedom and Prosperity, I explain why raising America’s top tax rate to French and German levels will undermine economic performance and reduce U.S. competitiveness.

As always, I look forward to feedback from Cato-at-Liberty readers. I already know that I mistakenly promoted Larry Lindsey by stating that he served as Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve rather than “just” a member of the Board of Governors, and I’m also a bit disappointed with the sound quality, but I’m mostly looking for substantive comments. This topic was a bit of a challenge. I wanted to focus on the big increase in the top marginal tax rate, and the negative implications of European-style fiscal policy, but obviously needed to give some background on the workings of Social Security. So let me know whether I was too detailed or not detailed enough.