http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/2011/08/01/on-the-debt-ceiling-deal-direction-more-important-than-degree/ Politics and policy from inside Washington Sun, 07 Apr 2013 21:23:48 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.2 http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/2011/08/01/on-the-debt-ceiling-deal-direction-more-important-than-degree/comment-page-1/#comment-12954 4ngry4merican Mon, 01 Aug 2011 20:18:21 +0000 http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/?p=11447#comment-12954 "Moody’s research recently estimated that at least half of US companies’ record $1,240 billion in cash balances is held overseas. It’s over there and not here because of the large repatriation tax. In recent conversations with top executives of several major US technology companies with cash overseas, Carl was assured that lowering that tax to 10% would bring most of the money to the US." Oh, he was ASSURED, was he? Let's play a little game called "what's more likely?" If the US lowered corporate taxes to 10%, would it be more likely that business owners would repatriate all that money and hand the government $124 billion out of the goodness of their hearts and a fine sense of civic responsibility, or would it be more likely that they would leave that money right where it is and continue to pay 0% like they've always done? “Moody’s research recently estimated that at least half of US companies’ record $1,240 billion in cash balances is held overseas. It’s over there and not here because of the large repatriation tax. In recent conversations with top executives of several major US technology companies with cash overseas, Carl was assured that lowering that tax to 10% would bring most of the money to the US.”
Oh, he was ASSURED, was he? Let’s play a little game called “what’s more likely?” If the US lowered corporate taxes to 10%, would it be more likely that business owners would repatriate all that money and hand the government $124 billion out of the goodness of their hearts and a fine sense of civic responsibility, or would it be more likely that they would leave that money right where it is and continue to pay 0% like they’ve always done?

]]> http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/2011/08/01/on-the-debt-ceiling-deal-direction-more-important-than-degree/comment-page-1/#comment-12953 4ngry4merican Mon, 01 Aug 2011 20:05:18 +0000 http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/?p=11447#comment-12953 "The idea of a tax holiday on foreign earnings of U.S. corporations will get a further hearing. The inflow of money would be used for hiring, buying equipment or stock buybacks/dividends." The hell it will!! US corporations have been on a tax holiday for a decade now and have not spent one nickel on "hiring, buying equipment or stock buybacks/dividends". A tax holiday will do one thing and one thing only, and that is the same thing tax breaks for corporations have always done and will always do: make the CEOs even more obscemely rich. “The idea of a tax holiday on foreign earnings of U.S. corporations will get a further hearing. The inflow of money would be used for hiring, buying equipment or stock buybacks/dividends.”
The hell it will!! US corporations have been on a tax holiday for a decade now and have not spent one nickel on “hiring, buying equipment or stock buybacks/dividends”. A tax holiday will do one thing and one thing only, and that is the same thing tax breaks for corporations have always done and will always do: make the CEOs even more obscemely rich.

]]>