By Pat Garofalo
Republicans this week filibustered a Democratic plan to extend a soon-to-expire payroll tax cut, objecting to the fact that the extension was paid for by implementing a small surtax on income in excess of $1 million. To justify their objection to taxing the wealthy, Republicans have revived their false claim that taxing the rich amounts to taxing small business owners and job creators.
Bloombergs Al Hunt asked Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) who represented the GOP on the fiscal supercommittee that failed to craft a deficit reduction package to explain this viewpoint, considering that more jobs were created under the Clinton administration and its higher taxes on the rich than were created following the Bush tax cuts. Upton admitted that I dont know specifically the answer to that question, nonsensically pointing to Fridays jobs report instead of trying to argue the premise of Hunts question:
HUNT: But Im asking, why did the economy grow a lot? Why were more jobs created in the previous decade under higher taxes than in this decade under lower taxes?
UPTON: I dont know specifically the answer to that question. I can I can maybe merit a guess. But, I mean, in large part is because our job we lost jobs. I mean, look at the jobs report that came out this last week, three-hundred- some-thousand people actually stopped looking for jobs.
As Center for American Progress Director of Tax and Budget Policy Michael Linden found, in the past 60 years, job growth has actually been greater in years when the top income tax rate was much higher than it is now. In fact, if you ranked each year since 1950 by overall job growth, the top five years would all boast marginal tax rates at 70 percent or higher. The GOP, as Upton displays, simply has no explanation for these facts.
In a Bloomberg op-ed, wealthy investor Nick Hanauer also blew a hole in the GOPs line of thinking, writing, I can start a business based on a great idea, and initially hire dozens or hundreds of people. But if no one can afford to buy what I have to sell, my business will soon fail and all those jobs will evaporate. Thats why I can say with confidence that rich people dont create jobs. The GOP would do well to take note.
Video & More: GOP Supercommittee Member Admits Bush Tax Cuts Didn't Create Jobs, Can't Explain Why | ThinkProgress