The addition of 87,000 new IRS agents has been celebrated by many as a way to capture billions in revenue to pay for the new bill on climate change and other programs. The claim is that increasing audits of people making over $400,000 will capture additional billions in revenue. That math has been challenged as wildly overestimated unless these new agents turn (as expected) to middle income taxpayers. The respected Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has also directly contradicted claims made by President Biden and the sponsors on increasing the tax burden for middle income families. What is interesting, however, are reports that the government believes that as much as $160 billion in Covid relief fraud exists and the government does not have the personnel or ability to recover most of those funds (or to prosecute most of the culprits). A fraction of those 87,000 new IRS agents would transform this effort, but documenting and prosecuting Covid relief fraud does not seem as much of a priority in Washington.Years ago, I debated one of the top advisers to Sen. Elizabeth Warren on her tax proposals, including a wealth tax. In the middle of the debate, the professor revealed that Warren and the Democrats wanted to radically increase the IRS to pursue wealthy Americans for more tax revenue through extensive audits. He spoke of adding billions in new money and thousands of new agents. It was another sweeping claim that the wealthy were not paying enough and that there was a virtually limitless amount of money to pay for new programs.They have now made good on that pledge with an $80 billion increase in the IRS budget — an increase that also must pay for itself in addition to covering the cost of new programs.
Many have noted that the numbers do not add up. While Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sent a letter ordering that the new agents should not be used to audit people making less than 400k, it is hard to see where the required $204 billion will come from. Some estimates suggest that an increase of 30 times in such audits would still fall short of the $35.3 billion sought in 2031.
However, there is as much as $160 billion in alleged fraud of Covid checks. The government simply sent out billions with little review or confirmation during the pandemic. Now, the New York Times reports that a relatively small number of investigators is overwhelmed by the numbers and unlikely to pursue most of this money: “There are currently 500 people working on pandemic-fraud cases across the offices of 21 inspectors general, plus investigators from the F.B.I., the Secret Service, the Postal Inspection Service and the Internal Revenue Service.”
The problem is that pursuing such fraud is also an indictment of Congress and the executive agencies, which tossed aside controls in the rush to get money out the door during the pandemic. Moreover, much of the fraud is not being committed by the “wealthy” class — the favorite target of leaders like Warren. It is more difficult to prosecute these individuals and attempt to recoup property.
It is also inconsistent with the focus of these politicians on the most wealthy as tax cheats and scofflaws. They have been presented as a bottomless pit of money — making any spending bill “free.” When President Joe Biden struggled to get the massive new spending bill through Congress in 2021, he turned to a pitch that would make Joe Isuzu blush: “We talk about price tags. It is zero price tag” and “My Build Back Better agenda costs zero dollars.” The trillions in spending is “free” — according to Biden — because others will pay for it. It’s like claiming your college tuition was free because your parents got the bill.
Biden is hardly the first politician to shrug off spending by saying “the rich will pay for it.” Indeed, during the Democratic primary, the candidates lined up behind figures like New York Mayor Bill De Blasio declaring “we will tax the hell out of the wealthy.”
Pursuing Covid relief fraud would not exactly fit the “eat the rich” theme that is so popular today. It would also highlight their own failure in ignoring objections at the time that there were few protections in place to shield against fraud. So the solution is simple. Add 87,000 to target wealthy Americans to seek $204 billion to pay for this bill while leaving 500 IG employees working with other agencies to pursue $160 billion in Covid fraud. In Washington, this makes absolute sense.
Democrats are clamoring for the day when they can return to the pre-Reagan days when they were hitting “the wealthy” for more than 90% of their income.
I’m those pre-Reagan days people were actually making more money than they are now. Single income households were common. After Reagan that changed.
They did tax at that rate and it was an utter failure. The wealthy moved money out of the country or put it into assets that appreciate but don’t produce taxable income. Cut investment and economic growth with the kill the rich stupidity. Business needs labor and labor needs business. While the negotiation over money will create friction, neither succeeds without the other.
Some People pay their bills as they’re incurred, have nearly no debt [under $1000 on Credit Cards / if not a due them, month to month].
A fair used Car (50-100k Miles), Minimum Car insurance, no Health insurance, a small but fixed income to make ends meet.
What’s left; gives them a Bed at Night, a Bathroom/Shower, and enough Food to get by.
They have ‘Played by the Rules’ since the entering the workforce after High School, They may have finished a College Education or not. Filed their Taxes on time every Year. They never committed a Crime, They never bought a House because it was always out of reach, They followed the Governmental and Societal Rules to the Tee, They never LIVED BEYOND THEIR MEANS.
Born and Raised U.S. Citizens having nothing to show for a lifetime of existence in the U.S.A. [.]
They Work Day to Day too make some Pay to Consume. That is Their existence,
and THIS, this is better than all the places that the Asylum Refugees come to Our Boarders from.
Be realistic, know that Honesty doesn’t Pay, but do Your Best. Just try to filter-out the Noise of the World around You, and try to Live and Be Happy.
Un-fricking-believable: the same cast of characters who ran Russiagate are leading/supervising the raid on Mar-a-Lago.
https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2022/08/18/fbi_unit_leading_mar-a-lago_probe_previously_led_russiagate_hoax_848582.html
The democrat intent for America is crystal clear.
Their every single act is authoritarian.
Their every single act dilutes the individual, their rights and their value.
I live in a zip code of 30K people and according to the PPP database we have over 400 barbers that each got $20,833 dollars which is the maximum that doesn’t have to be repaid. We also have a ton of limo drivers. Problem is, we don’t even have a barber shop in this town.
I just got my refund check last week. I filed in Februrary. Trying to save some money using the paper tax return didnt work very well. My return was remarkably simple: only a few spaces needed to be filled in on the return. It used to be that the IRS could handle 100% paper returns within a few months at the most. Now only a small percent are paper and its way way over the heads of the Dilberts working there. At least use the extra people to do the basic work that the IRS is supposed to do in the first place.
Maybe if they simplified the tax code, there would be more compliance and less need for government agents to enforce it.
If I were a Wall Street executive, I’d be focusing on investments in bullet-proofing down to the individual citizen level, including bullet-proof vests (Kevlar etc.), bullet-proofing the family vehicle,
and fortifying your home with extra layers of protection. Also, armed guards for regular folk may become a viable business if reasonably affordable. In addition, if the GOP does not take control of the House in November, and perhaps the Senate as well, it might be time to tell citizens with an Individual Retirement Account and/or a 401(k) or similar retirement plan to cash out, pay the early withdrawal penalties and taxes due where necessary, consider it a small price to pay so that the Democrats in D.C. and the IRS won’t be able to ‘seize’ those trillions of dollars currently in those retirement plans — One other area of investment advice for those with a healthy fear of politicians run amok: companies will be coming into existence to assist folks in either going ‘off the grid’ or leaving the United States, residing elsewhere. some of the uber-wealthy already have made plans to start their own country, if you can believe it. And I’m no conspiracy nutcase — I’m a JFK Democrat who has watched the disappearance of ‘statesmen’ being replaced with ‘what’s in it for me’ politicians since the 1960’s. I still haven’t bought guns, but I’m considering it now.
We need a true Robin Hood. Someone who will take from the govt. and give back the people the property that was stollen from them.
no need to investigate Covid fraud I suspect the vast majority who committed the fraud are Democrats
It seems like small business’ will be the ones attacked.
The whole plandemic has been an engineered attack on small businesses. Big corp can’t have competition and govy can’t have people not dependent on them = a match made in tyrannists heaven. “You will own nothing (or have nothing) and be happy.” I’m sure the North Koreans in the death camps have to recite Schwab’s line every morning………
As usual. The left hates small business.
As usual, professor, the GOP talking points are strong in you. I know you don’t care if what you wrote is true but here is what SNOPES says about the Claim. FALSE! https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/irs-87000-new-agents/
SNOPES??? Has NO CREDIBILITY!
The IRS doesn’t need FOUR Infantry Battalions of goons with guns to use lethal force to “audit the rich”.
You just showed us you’re a National Socialist.
Oh, well, if Snopes says it’s false, then it must be true. You’re an idiot.
Justice Holmes citing Snopes…a joke upon a joke.
A lot of the rich got COVID relief and there was a lot of fraud involved there. Some of the worst fraud involved Kushner’s friends. Many well connected.
Let’s not pretend the rich did not get these funds. They may not have needed it in all cases, but they got it, and going after these funds would include the rich as well.
A lot of them were rich Democrats too. Can’t blame Trump for all the corruption in this country. https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/07/9904175/famous-ppp-loan-recipients-sba-list
To the government the citizens are the enemy. Look at their actions, 87K new ‘armed and dangerous’ irs agents to harangue the citizenry with and not a single dollar or new agent to secure the Southern Border with…. and as others have written this is another dem (I now call them and their WEF puppet masters ‘tyrannists’ because that’s what they are) private army, they already have blm and antifa.
A national sales tax with 3% cap and provision for certain items to be nontaxable (like now) would go a long way of freeing the American people of this tyranny.
Donald Trump has been paying $750 per year on what he claims is billions of dollars in annual income. Most Ultra wealthy pay less than middle class people in taxes on a percentage basis.
Certainly, a system that allows that needs more enforcement against the wealthy. There is a lot of cheating going on amongst the wealthy, although Trump is likely among the worst offenders. We clearly do not do enough enforcement now.
Are you applying for one of these new position at the irs? He’s not cheating, his operating within the laws Congress has been paid handsomely to make by the uber rich – it’s been noted that some tax provisions in a bill are written solely to benefit one individual or corp. If you want to tax the wealthy more simply change the laws to capture more of their money = this irs tyranny will fall on political enemies and the working and middle class.
Revenue collection is at an all time high and why does govy need more money, they already waste enough. $160 billion in Covid fraud is only one example of this, although many topless bars and exotic car dealerships were thankful for the boost$$$$. In the terms and manner of it’s distribution Congress engineered it to be abused.
“He’s not cheating, his operating within the laws”
You are apparently paying no attention to the two investigations of fraud going on in New York. The Trump Org. CEO is right now pleading guilty on all counts and getting ready to testify about the rest of Trump Org. Why would you say he doesn’t cheat?
https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/manhattan/ny-trump-organization-cfo-allen-weisselberg-to-plead-guilty-tax-fraud-20220818-s7qjxle6o5ecbb6c7elcaqohn4-story.html
ATS is reading tea leaves like he did with the Russia hoax, the Steele Dossier and everything else. Let’s hear what Weisselberg says before drawing conclusions that in ATS’ case are almost always wrong.
Do you own a house or have kids? If so, do you take those deductions? If so you are a tax cheat, correct?
Donald Trump’s audits reveal no misdoing. His earnings are such that he can pay expensive accountants to follow the law and take deductions. That is not cheating. You don’t have that ability, so you will be left paying the taxes you want the rich to pay.
I advocate changing the laws, but Democrats won’t do that. In fact, to pass the recent bill, Sinema made sure that the tax on the rich hedge fund employees is at the capital gains rate rather than the income tax rates that are much higher. Without that tax break for the rich, the bill would not have passed.
In any event, keep up the good work because, without guys like you, my tax bills would rise considerably. I also don’t want to forget to thank you for the $7,500 you are giving to me when I buy my new Tesla unaffordable to most. You are great. Keep soaking the American public while you make the billionaires richer.
S. Meyer the liar strikes again.
“ Donald Trump’s audits reveal no misdoing. His earnings are such that he can pay expensive accountants to follow the law and take deductions.”
NOBODY knows what Trump’s audits reveal. They have never stopped according to him and he’s never released his tax returns as he promised.
He pays his accountants to cheat Thats why he’s in court for possible tax fraud in New York.
“NOBODY knows what Trump’s audits reveal.”
That is right. One can’t call him guilty unless you have evidence. In the past you have stupidly cited evidence and wrongdoing but were proven wrong repeatedly. That is how stupid you are.
Today, we have a new claim. I don’t know how that will work out, so I wait and see. In that fashion I am not wrong every time I open my mouth like you are.
Tax laws are strange. They are made to satisfy the rich and provide exemptions like the exemption Democrat Sinema forced to be included in the most recent bill. Without that provision millionaire hedge fund managers declaring capital gains instead of regular income tax would be guilty of tax evasion.
I don’t know that most people in Weisselberger’s trouble are normally sentenced to prison. We now have an abusive government that uses intimidation so the settlement might mean intimidation works unless, of course, this is what usually happens. Do you think the evidence in Hunter Biden’s case isn’t as significant or more-so?
You don’t think so I expect no answers or understanding of the law from you. However, if you have something intelligent to state do so, but first explain why Sinema gave such a tax break to specific constituents.
Anonymous (S. Meyer),
“ NOBODY knows what Trump’s audits reveal.”
That is right.”
So you’re admitting you lied. That’s a first.
“So you’re admitting you lied. That’s a first.
Whenever one thinks you can’t sound more foolish, you prove them wrong. What I said is quite different than your feeble mid could absorb. You sound like a person with an IQ below 80-90. Below is what I said. Keep in mind a man is innocent until proven guilty.
“That is right. One can’t call him guilty unless you have evidence. In the past you have stupidly cited evidence and wrongdoing but were proven wrong repeatedly. That is how stupid you are.
Today, we have a new claim. I don’t know how that will work out, so I wait and see. In that fashion I am not wrong every time I open my mouth like you are.”
I just read the NYT article on Weisselberg. Here is an interesting point.
“The plea deal does not require Mr. Weisselberg to cooperate with the district attorney’s broader criminal investigation of Mr. Trump, and his admissions will not implicate the former president.”
It’s from the NYT one has to be careful when reading what they are saying. It seems that what Weisselberger has to say doesn’t implicate Trump.read into what they are saying.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/18/nyregion/weisselberg-trump-guilty-plea.html?campaign_id=60&emc=edit_na_20220818&instance_id=0&nl=breaking-news&ref=headline®i_id=2585408&segment_id=101728&user_id=99d0bac73a0e0ed40eb421e060769f8d
We Need More…is the kind of partisan idiot that claims Trump doesn’t pay his taxes as he supports Biden, a known tax cheat.
Covid relief funds bought the dimdems votes, this new sack of lies passed under the misnomer of “Inflation Relief” will not help them in 2022 nor in 2024. Keeping their bloated, superfluous and unionized programs well funded is all that these grifters care about.
87,000 goons aren’t going after the rich or COVID money. They’re coming for the little guy. The ma and pa businesses, the burrito lady, the little people who can’t afford the CPA and the attorney.
Must be armed and willing to use lethal force. That knife will cut both ways.
We have a remedy for the National Socialist Democrat Party it’s called the 2nd Amendment.
The Socialist think they got this . Louis XVI though that until they stormed the Bastille.
Socialist are claiming J6 was an actual insurrection. When they storm the Capital with guns that will be an insurrection.
Marxists never voluntarily give up power.
Tax returns representing income of more than $400k, are 2% of all returns filed.
Democrats believe all the lies they are told
Why does the National Socialist Government Party demonize the successful and hardworking? Because they’re Marxists.
It was the Corporations and successful businesses owners that provided me employment through my working life. I always had a job.
There aren’t 87,000 unemployed accountants in the U.S. The IRS will not be filling all those positions with accountants anyway. Many will be clerks who process tax returns. Others will be the non-accountants (Customer Service Reps) who answer the phone. There will be Tax Examiners, who conduct low-level “shoebox audits” in the office. The actual Revenue Agent position requires a degree in accounting or the equivalent number of college credits in accounting. They conduct field audits under enormous time constraints and it is one of the most difficult jobs in the IRS. Many R.A.s will leave that position and take jobs as Analysts, managers and in Policy because they pay more and are a lot easier. The IRS could reduce the hiring by using personnel in these superfluous positions to do the actual work of the agency. In any case, newly minted auditors won’t have the technical skills to audit anyone who can afford a CPA or tax attorney. Biden and Janet Yellen are lying, but what’s new?
Only makes sense if you accept that the IRS agents will be used to go against a despised minority.
Lois Lerners with guns and a “willingness to use deadly force”.
They are the political police of the democrats!
They are the stasi…with unchallengeable power!
Vote like the next election will be the LAST
Vote Blue,
only if you want to see the country continue its journey down the cr*pper
Vote Blue if….
You support vaccine mandates, big pharma, masking healthy children, covid vax for babies!
You support Wall St. and the ultra wealthy
You support bigger government, more authoritarianism
You support endless wars, and funding endless proxy war / money laundering for Ukraine
You support election fraud, universal mail-in ballots, illegal drop boxes, and the US Postal Service ‘handling’ election ballots
You support raising taxes on middle class
You support doubling the size of IRS agents to target conservatives and the Venmo accounts of ‘working people’ scraping by
You support teachers unions, forcing the mis’education’/indoctrination of children –without school choice!
You support leniency on crime, drugs, radical DAs, wide open southern border
You support anarchy in our streets
You support government corruption in all its ugly forms
You support Lizard Cheney!
You support the destruction of the US Constitution
You support One World Government
ETC!
“Vote Blue,”
If you don’t have a clue.
@Justice Holmes
Ha, ha! Surely you jest. No. And not ever again. There are enough Conservatives and surprisingly, self-declared independent voters (including me) here to actually take notice of who do not and will not support the DNC. We are the people that actually follow politics beyond the news and vote. It’s here everyday. The readership of this site only increases each quarter. There would be no explanation other than fraud for that same DNC to win even a participation trophy. I guess the standard for ‘fascist’ has moved beyond the GOP to simply, ‘not a Democrat’. But sure, the dems aren’t a regime, eh?