Tax The Rich, Lose The Rich

Barack Obama has been quite plain that he's going to tax the crap out of 'the rich'.  Just one problem with that:

Last year, Maryland lawmakers decided to balance the budget by creating a millionaire tax bracket that raised the top marginal income-tax rate to 6.25%. One year later, there are 1/3 fewer Maryland millionaires and state collections from millionaires have plummeted by $100M:

"In 2008 roughly 3,000 million-dollar income tax returns were filed by the end of April. This year there were 2,000, which the state comptroller's office concedes is a "substantial decline." On those missing returns, the government collects 6.25% of nothing. Instead of the state coffers gaining the extra $106 million the politicians predicted, millionaires paid $100 million less in taxes than they did last year — even at higher rates."

The shortfall apparently results from some rich taxpayers moving out-of-state and a decline in the number of millionaires due to the recession. And it's another example of why it's unwise to depend solely on the rich for revenue.

California is another example, where 'the rich' are moving out in huge numbers due to massive environmental taxes.  New York City is another example, where a tax specifically on millionaires is prompting a number of big names to leave town, even drawing fire from the likes of Donald Trump.

So what do you suppose will happen when Obama starts taxing 'the rich' on a national scale?  You got it - they go bye-bye.  And what happens after that?  You got it - the middle class get hammered to make up for the lack of 'the rich'.

Maybe someone should tell the President.  Then again, he's a liberal, so things like facts, history, and economics don't really mean much to him.  It's just too bad that you and I are going to get hammered for it.

There's my two cents.