The Tax Code Becomes Optional

Well, isn't this convenient:

All U.S. taxpayers would enjoy the same immunity from IRS penalties and interest as House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel (D-NY) and Obama Administration Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, if a bill introduced today by Congressman John Carter (R-TX) becomes law.

Carter, a former longtime Texas judge, today introduced the Rangel Rule Act of 2009, HR 735, which would prohibit the Internal Revenue Service from charging penalties and interest on back taxes against U.S. citizens. Under the proposed law, any taxpayer who wrote "Rangel Rule" on their return when paying back taxes would be immune from penalties and interest.

So, is this saying that all you have to do is not get caught for the first year, and then the next year you just write 'Rangel Rule' and you're golden?  I can't imagine that would encourage anyone to skip paying their taxes intentionally, can you?

In case you don't know, Rangel is yet another Democrat member of the most ethical Congress in history who is currently under investigation for tax fraud.  It seems that he didn't understand the current tax law -- despite writing it himself -- and thus accidentally neglected to pay some of his taxes.

Just like Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.

The fun part is that this bill is clearly a poke in the eye by a Republican.  It'll be interesting to see what the House does with it.  It's nice to see some fight in the GOP for a change.

There's my two cents.