A Five-Minute Commentary | John Eagleton | The Truth Party
Well, California just rejected a billionaire tax.
And everybody’s scratching their heads.
The Democrats are fighting among themselves. The billionaires are celebrating. The progressives are furious.
And I’m sitting here thinking…
You’re all missing the fucking point!
We don’t need a billionaire tax.
We need to completely overhaul the American tax code.
And while we’re at it, we need to overhaul the federal government.
Because here’s the problem.
We’re arguing about how to collect more money without asking a much more important question.
What the hell are we doing with the money we’ve already got?
Think about that.
California wanted to impose a one-time 5% tax on billionaires.
Now, I understand the motivation. They want to fund health care. They want wealthy people to contribute more.
Fine.
But why are we singling out individuals based on their accumulated wealth when we haven’t fixed the system that taxes the profits generated by American corporations?
Let’s take Apple.
Apple is one of the most successful companies in human history.
And good for them!
I love capitalism. I love innovation. I love entrepreneurs. I love people who take risks, create businesses, employ people, and make money.
But capitalism doesn’t operate by itself.
And here’s something I’ve been saying for a long time.
Socialism is the machine that powers capitalism.
Now, before somebody starts screaming that I’m a communist, hear me out.
Who builds the roads?
Who builds the bridges?
Who builds the airports?
Who provides the military that protects our country?
Who provides the police, firefighters, public schools, and the infrastructure that allows American businesses to operate?
We do.
The American people.
Through our government.
Now, technically, economists call these public goods and services. Fine. Call them whatever you want.
The point is that private enterprise depends on public investment.
Without that foundation, capitalism doesn’t work.
So here’s my proposal.
A flat 29% tax on corporate profits.
Every corporation.
Big or small.
No special rates. No sweetheart deals. No elaborate tax shelters.
You make a profit, you pay 29%.
Period.
If a small business in Greensboro makes $100,000 in profit, it pays $29,000.
If Apple makes $100 billion in profit, it pays $29 billion.
Same percentage.
Same rules.
And let me make something very clear.
We’re taxing profits, not sales.
If your company generates a million dollars in revenue and spends $900,000 running the business, you’ve made $100,000.
That’s what gets taxed.
Not the million dollars.
The profit.
And yes, we’d have to establish clear accounting rules, including how we handle international profits and legitimate business expenses.
But the principle is simple.
Everybody plays by the same rules.
Now, here’s where this gets interesting.
People are going to ask me, “John, how are you going to run the entire federal government on a 29% corporate profits tax?”
And my answer is…
We’re not going to run the same federal government!
That’s the whole damn point!
You cannot overhaul the tax code without overhauling the government that spends the money.
The two go hand in hand.
I want to fundamentally restructure the federal government.
And I want to start by running its finances with the same discipline we expect from a well-managed corporation.
Money in.
Money out.
Complete visibility.
It’s not rocket science.
Let’s take the Pentagon.
Suppose Congress gives the Department of Defense a $900 billion budget.
That’s your budget.
Now show me where the money goes.
How much did you spend on personnel?
How much on equipment?
How much on aircraft?
How much on ships?
How much on maintenance?
How much on contracts?
And how much is left?
I want every dollar accounted for.
And I want independent auditors verifying the numbers.
Not just at the Pentagon.
Every federal department. Every federal agency. Every federal program.
And here’s another idea.
What if we actually measured what we got for our money?
Imagine that!
You spent $10 billion?
Great.
What did we accomplish?
Did we improve something?
Did we solve a problem?
Did we deliver the service we promised?
Or did we just spend $10 billion?
Because spending money is not an accomplishment.
Getting results is an accomplishment.
And here’s the part I really love.
I want every American to be able to go online and see exactly how their government is spending their money.
A live federal financial dashboard.
Revenue coming in.
Money being authorized.
Contracts being awarded.
Expenditures going out.
Remaining balances.
Every department.
Every agency.
All in one place.
Now, obviously, we have to protect classified military information and people’s personal data.
But that’s no excuse for hiding the government’s finances from the people who pay for it.
Think about this.
If you own stock in a corporation, that corporation is required to provide financial reports.
You get to see how it’s performing.
You get to see its revenue.
You get to see its expenses.
You get to see whether management is doing its job.
Well, guess what?
The American people are the shareholders of the United States government.
And it’s about time we started acting like it.
Now, I know what some people are thinking.
“John, the government isn’t a corporation.”
You’re right.
It’s not.
The government’s responsibility isn’t to make a profit.
It’s to serve the American people.
And that includes things that don’t generate revenue, like national defense, public safety, health care, and helping people who need assistance.
But serving the public doesn’t mean we abandon financial discipline.
It means financial discipline becomes even more important.
Because it’s not the government’s money.
It’s our money.
Now, let me be clear about something else.
This is a fundamental restructuring of the American economy.
I’m talking about eventually eliminating personal income taxes, property taxes, and sales taxes as part of a comprehensive reform.
But you can’t just wave a magic wand and eliminate those taxes tomorrow.
You have to do the accounting.
You have to protect essential services.
You have to figure out how states and local governments are funded.
And you have to determine whether the new system actually generates enough revenue to meet our obligations.
That’s what responsible reform looks like.
But we should be willing to ask those questions.
Because here’s what bothers me about this whole California billionaire tax debate.
We’re still arguing within the boundaries of the existing system.
Tax this person.
Tax that person.
Raise this rate.
Close that loophole.
And meanwhile, the fundamental structure remains largely unchanged.
I want to ask a different question.
If we were building the United States government from scratch today, knowing everything we know about technology, accounting, economics, and transparency, would we build the system we have now?
I seriously doubt it.
So why aren’t we talking about redesigning it?
Why aren’t we talking about a tax code ordinary Americans can understand?
Why aren’t we talking about a government where every dollar can be traced?
Why aren’t we talking about a system where corporate success helps finance the public infrastructure that makes that success possible?
And why aren’t we demanding that government demonstrate results?
Look, I don’t resent billionaires.
I don’t resent successful corporations.
I want people to succeed.
I want businesses to flourish.
I want entrepreneurs to innovate.
I want America to be the greatest place in the world to start a business.
But I also want a government that works.
A government that is transparent.
A government that is accountable.
And a tax system where everybody understands the rules.
That’s the conversation I want America to have.
Not simply how much more money we can collect.
But how we can build a better system for collecting it, managing it, and investing it in our future.
Because ultimately, this isn’t about Democrats or Republicans.
It’s about the American people.
It’s about turning spectators into citizens.
And giving those citizens the information they need to hold their government accountable.
We don’t need to punish success.
We need to make success work for everybody.
And we need a government that can account for every damn dollar.
I’m John Eagleton.
This is the Truth Party.
But first, we show up.
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