If ever there was a populist blueprint for deficit reduction, this has got to be it.

Each year, millionaires are soaking the government, not illegally, for some $30 billion in benefits from tax giveaways and loan programs, according to a report by Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.

The Republican senator, a staunch fiscal hawk and equal opportunity scourge of government waste and abuse, released "Subsidies of the Rich and Famous" Monday to little fanfare, saying in an e-mailed statement, "This welfare for the well-off - costing billions of dollars a year - is being paid for with the taxes of the less fortunate, many who are working two jobs just to make ends meet, and IOUs to be paid off by future generations."

The eye-popping findings in the 36-page report include some eye-catching names, like former NBA star Scottie Pippen and billionaire media mogul Ted Turner, both of whom received farm subsidies courtesy of the U.S. taxpayer. Singer Jon Bon Jovi paid property taxes of only $100 last year on a plot of land he used to raise bees. Iconic crooner Bruce Springsteen also got in on the farm subsidy action, for property he leases to an organic farmer. And Millionaire composer-producer Quincy Jones is even singled out for receiving a $25,000 award from the federally-funded National Endowment for the Arts.

Coburn's investigation found that from 2003 to 2009, millionaires received over $316 million in farm program payments. In one four-year period alone, the senator's staff, reviewing tax returns found that fully 78 percent of recipients listed a city as their primary address, not exactly a location for a farm.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture regularly pays millionaires, the report found, to conserve land and protect endangered species, waving income caps for government subsidies in current law. In the past two years, Coburn's staff counted more than $89 million paid out, as a result of this waiver authority.

The report lists two examples: "A founder and former executive of an insurance company improperly received more than $300,000 in farm program payments in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006; and a part-owner of a professional sports franchise received total of more than $200,000 in farm program payments in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006."

"The government's social safety net, which has long existed to catch those who are down and help them get back up, is now being used as a hammock by some millionaires, some who are paying less taxes than average middle class families," Coburn said.

Parents are likely to be outraged when they read about millionaires taking advantage of a Department of Education low-interest loan program. Over the past four years, the average loan paid out through one program to wealthy families was $19,405. A total of more than $16 million went to rich students. Not only that, but those making more than $1 million in their adjusted gross income, from 2007 to 2009, according to the Coburn report, saved $18 million through childcare tax credits.

And perhaps one of the most egregious findings in the report, millionaires collecting home heating assistance from a program that is supposed to help the very poor. A nonpartisan General Accounting Office investigation found wealthy individuals collecting payments through the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) while living in million-dollar mansions in tony Potomac, Maryland and in the Chicago suburbs. According to the report, "GAO even identified one such person living in a home valued at $2 million, who also owned a Mercedes. That same individual won a multimillion dollar settlement in the mid-2000s, which was under appeal at the time of the report."

Taxpayers also subsidized the losses of gamblers to the tune of $20 billion over the past four years.

Coburn said his investigation, compiled using some previously-published government reports and news accounts, reveals the "sheer Washington stupidity with government policies pampering the wealthy costing taxpayers billions of dollars every year."

But to be clear, these individuals did nothing wrong, technically. The system is the system, and these individuals operated within it, not apart from it.

No doubt, these findings will be waived about by both sides of the aisle in the ongoing fight over deficit reduction, which has a bipartisan group on the brink of failure as it grapples to find at least $1.2 trillion in savings over 10 years. Republicans want tax code reform; Democrats want the rich to "pay their fair share." The report provides ammo to both sides.

"This is not an accidental loophole in the law. To the contrary, this reverse Robin Hood style of wealth redistribution is an intentional effort to get all Americans bought into a system where everyone appears to benefit," Coburn said. "We should never demonize those who are successful. Nor should we pamper them with unnecessary welfare to create an appearance everyone is benefiting from federal programs."



Read more: http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2011/11/14/your-tax-dollars-subsidizing-scottie-pippin-ted-turner-and-jon-bon-jovi#ixzz1dibN7ChP

A good article but easily misinterpreted. A liberal sees these kind of exposures and says "Toldya! Toldya! The system is rigged to oppress the poor and make the rich richer! That is happening but is it because the rich rob the poor?

No, I don't think so. The fanatic pursuit of money is pathological. It is as much an illness as the obssessive pursuit of sex or booze. A poor person with no education, a limited intellect, and no contacts in the business community may deal drugs or rob banks. The same personality,but with those advantages, may become a Wall St. broker or trader. In other words, the illness comes before the disease and drives the compulsion,not the money itself.Most "rich" people didn't inherit it or steal it.They worked for it.

The above article seems to be mostly directed against farm subsidies and rightly so. But to assume that those subsidies exist soley as a give-away program for rich farmers is wrong. These subs and set-asides are intended to manipulate the market price of basic commodities in a way that makes farming profitable for small farmers so that there will always be small farmers in business. The system has been corrupted but not by "rich" people. It has been corrupted and plundered by lobbyists and politicians.

I believe I could support the above statements of mine,but I won't bother; it's not necessary or important. What is important is what voters think. I think that voters who read up on these types of government programs instinctively know they will serve to make that legislation's most avid supporters rich in money and/or votes. It is not the rich people we should fear,it is our complacency. Our founders would be startled into silence if they heard a reading of these farm policies. No strategy could be more european and less American. The farm subsidy and "land preservation" policies should be ended NOW and would be if the politicians would stop the lobbyists. Throw some in jail.

As for the other tax rip-offs, a flat tax is the best answer. But I predict we will NOT see any major change in the tax code in my lifetime. I am convinced that the tax code has evolved to become integral with the power machinations of Congress,and they will NOT shut down their bank or even think about letting the taxpayer hold the keys. I am convinced it will always be that way as long as we have a democratic form of representative government.

"Where do your tax dollars go ?"

Down the toilet as usual. Here's a tip: Save all your money, make yourself as rich as humanly possible for within your means, and sit back and laugh at everyone else. If of course that is within your means. Don't think for one minute rich people aren't doing that as we speak.

Of course they are,on the backs of the working class,and poor!!
With Repugs help, no tax for the rich!

Go Occupy!

oh! and stop Norquist pledge

Add "Norquist pledge Republicans signed?"
Republicans Consider Breaking No-Tax Pledge as Deadline Looms
‎
BusinessWeek - Brian Faler - 8 minutes ago
A number of Republicans are playing down anti-tax pledges they signed with Norquist's group. “We take an oath to uphold the Constitution” and “that trumps ...

runawayhorses wrote:"Where do your tax dollars go ?"

Down the toilet as usual. Here's a tip: Save all your money, make yourself as rich as humanly possible for within your means, and sit back and laugh at everyone else. If of course that is within your means. Don't think for one minute rich people aren't doing that as we speak.

Excellent advice. While yer scraping it in and piling it up,make plans to give at least 50% away in the form of many taxes and prepare to be called greedy. It's a fact that the top 10% in income pay 70% of the tax bill but that ain't good enough. We have the right to take IT ALL if we decide to, don't we? So that means YOU have no "rights" at all over your income doesn't it? Does "we are the 99%" really mean "we are the people who DEMAND 99%" ?

Just stockpile all your money in a savings account that draws Interest is what I meant if you are not making anymore income and are living off of what you earned or inherited in the past, who cares about taxes? If you have a couple million in the bank that's been there for years and you are not making any income why care about taxes? You "make more money" with INTEREST from the amount you have in the bank. In some cases, you make more money a month in interest from the bank than what you spend in a month. So you GAIN money regardless. Depends on what your expenses are.

You take out a thousand dollars every now and then from the bank and the money is back in your account in a matter of time because it drew interest. If you can manage to get yourself if that kind of position you have succeeded in managing all your financial worries.

Fuck taxes, I don't give a damn. I'm retired and living on the money in my bank. I make no money and have no income so therefore I don't care. They are not taxing me for money that's already been taxed. Its in the bank just sitting there drawing interest.

Tyler wrote: "Fuck taxes, I don't give a damn. I'm retired and living on the money in my bank. I make no money and have no income so therefore I don't care. They are not taxing me for money that's already been taxed. Its in the bank just sitting there drawing interest."

Our situations are similar with one huge difference. I pay no taxes either and they shouldn't concern me. But this admin seems determined to re-distribute all sources of income. They have already stripped half a trillion $$$ outta SSA, skipped 2 years of increases, and grossly overloaded Medicaire. They have attacked ALL sources of personal income. Pumping trillions of fake money into our economy will raise (and has raised) the costs of everything as the value of the dollar decreases. The so-called but VERY effective "hidden" tax. And did all that wastage help me in any way? Did it help anybody? Paying someone not to work doesn't help that person. Does giving a junkie another hit help him?

The equation is rapidly changing. Used to be: work = wages/salaries = SSA = a basic retirement benefit FOR THOSE WHO WORKED FOR IT. Now it's: work or no work = benefits, but reduced benefits for all. As pointless as my whining may be, I won't see this massive theft take place without bitching about it.

Will taxing the "rich" more help me? No. Will it reduce the national debt in a significant way? No. Will it help save SSA? No. Will it stabalize the cost of living? No. Will villifying the rich distract the electorate away from the real thieves? You betcha! What other purpose can it have? When a group of only 1 in 10 taxpayers are paying 7 outta 10 dollars in expenses, something is fishy when one says they aren't paying their "fair share". I refuse to feel better about my government's spending policies just because others are being ripped off more than me. We're ALL being fucked.

I agree moon and I didn't mean to sound unsympathetic to people that pay taxes. Or maybe I did, I was expressing what some people have and care about. It depends on how you handle your money.

On top of it all, my Mom was a successful CPA that had her own private practice, and she was also a college professor at a college here in town. Frank Loyd Wright designed the college. Anyway, my mom setup a trust fund for when she dies that I get close to 500 dollars a month for the rest of my life. I just throw that in the pile with the rest. Its a blessing and I'm proud of her for thinking about me and my brother to set that up. Its deposited automatically directly into my account each month.

Money is obviously a touchy subject for most people here so I will re-frame from talking about it any farther.

I love talking about money, I inherited a perpetual trust from my Mother, but I get the taxes every year.

runawayhorses wrote:Money is obviously a touchy subject for most people here so I will re-frame from talking about it any farther.

I'm not touchy at all about money. I have all I need and a little more. I just get pissed at these liberal yahoos who never can accept that everything costs somebody something. All those free medical services paid under Medicaid are the reason that we SSA recipients have to pay for part B coverage and 20% co-payments while all the Medicaid recipients get all services absolutely "FREE".

re-frame?

SSC wrote:I love talking about money, I inherited a perpetual trust from my Mother, but I get the taxes every year.

Well, I didn't inherit anything but my Dad's dazzling looks. You and Tyler,in order to be fair to me, should be willing to share your wealth with me. Anything less than $100.00 per month from each of you would be an insult.

meemoon wrote:Well, I didn't inherit anything but my Dad's dazzling looks. You and Tyler,in order to be fair to me, should be willing to share your wealth with me. Anything less than $100.00 per month from each of you would be an insult.

How bout we negotiate this arrangement? In the interest of a deal that will satisfy you, I'm suggesting that I send you a carton of cigarettes every month, the cheap ones like "Basic" or "305's", I ain't getting you Marlboro or Winston. If you're really good that month I'll throw in a box of chocolate candy's.

That's my offer on the table..

You have 24 hours to decide or you get nothing.. That's my final offer. You should take it considering I'm getting nothing out of the deal..

SSC can bake you a pie or something, I'm offering you cigarettes and candy and you don't have to do a damn thing.

LOL..I am in with the pie..

Hmmmmph. Not enough so I will NOT sully my reputation with an agreement. Cash and cash only.