Let's not forget FDR was a player before polio slowed him down.
Don't count this Dutchman out :O),
Tom Lehman This does not constitute or imply any type of an endorsement. :O)
Carl Remick wrote:
> Trump Would Soak Rich As President
>
> By the Associated Press
>
> Greenville, S.C. -- Seeking credibility for a potential presidential bid,
> Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he would soak the rich -- including
> himself -- with an enormous new tax to erase the national debt, save Social
> Security and cut taxes for the middle class.
>
> Trump, a New York real estate tycoon with a net worth of about $5 billion,
> would increase his own tax bill by at least $725 million.
>
> "It's a big hit for me, but again I think it's worth it," the potential
> Reform Party candidate said Tuesday in a telephone interview from his New
> York office.
>
> In a brief outline of his plan obtained by The Associated Press, Trump
> pledged to "make this country entirely debt free as we enter the next
> millennium."
>
> Trump would impose a one-time 14.25 percent tax on the net worth of people
> and trusts worth more than $10 million. Facing questions about the
> feasibility of the plan, he said he would allow wealthy Americans who have
> trouble liquidating their assets to pay the tax off over 10 years.
>
> The $5.7 trillion he expects to raise is about two-thirds of the nation's
> gross domestic product -- a statistic sure to set off alarm bells in the
> financial community.
>
> "If you think there is a bubble in the stock market, this is a sure way to
> prick it," said Mark Zandi, chief economist of RFA Dismal Sciences, an
> economic consulting company in West Chester, Pa.
>
> "Even talking about it would risk capital flight out of the country," added
> Andrew Hodge, senior vice president of the WEFA group in Eddystone, Pa. "It
> is pretty confiscatory in terms of property rights."
>
> Trump, a long shot for the presidency, dismissed the doom-and-gloom
> scenarios. "It would not be a shock to the system," he said. "I've never
> seen paying off debt as being bad for the system."
>
> He predicted a 35 percent boost in economic activity after elimination of
> the debt and the inheritance tax, and cuts in income taxes. "The wealthy
> would not suffer," he said.
>
> Economics aside, Trump was seeking stature and attention with his first
> major policy proposal. Known mostly for his wealth, lifestyle and monogramed
> buildings, Trump wants to be taken seriously as a potential presidential
> candidate.
>
> Avoiding the traditional scene-setting speech, he planned to unveil the
> package in a series of telephone interviews today.
>
> The plan underscores his strategy of appealing to low- and middle-class
> Americans. Even amid an economic boom, Trump believes his class-conscious
> message will resonate with the millions of voters who are leery of America's
> economic and political elite.
>
> He also believes he has a rags-to-riches story that appeals to Americans who
> dream of following him into the gilded life.
>
> "Trump is determined to put forward provocative ideas while he has the
> spotlight," said longtime Republican operative Roger Stone, who is heading
> Trump's exploratory committee.
>
> Trump said the $5.7 trillion would pay off the national debt, saving the
> government $200 billion in interest payments. Half of that money, $100
> billion, would go to middle-class tax cuts and the rest to Social Security.
>
> He wants to eliminate the inheritance tax, giving the wealthy a break on the
> assets they plan to leave behind as a tradeoff for the one-time tax. Stone
> said the economy would grow enough to pay for cutting the inheritance tax.
>
> There would be no tax increase for corporations, as Trump believes they
> would be passed on to consumers.
>
> Experts raised several questions about the plan, including:
>
> -- His numbers. Using Federal Reserve Board tables, Zandi said the total net
> worth of all American households is $38.4 trillion. If Trump taxed every
> American at 14.25 percent, he still would not raise $5.7 trillion, Zandi
> said. Stone said his reading of the Fed figures suggests that total wealth
> in America is $50 trillion.
>
> --The technicalities. Assets fluctuate wildly in America, making it
> difficult to determine a person's tax bill. Huge amounts of assets also
> would have to be liquidated to pay the bills. Stone said the details would
> be worked out once Trump took office.
>
> Trump even conceded that the measure has no support on Capitol Hill. But he
> predicted voters would force lawmakers to act if he were elected.
>
> Trump is not assured the Reform Party nomination -- Pat Buchanan also is
> seeking it -- and he ranks low in national polls as a general election
> candidate.
>
> "It's not at all surprising to me that pointy heads and editorial writers
> are not going to like this," said Stone, who said he consulted several
> economists in fashioning the plan.
>
> Unlike 1992, when the sagging economy was the centerpiece of the
> presidential campaign, the issue is being downplayed by candidates this
> cycle.
>
> [end]
>
> Carl
>
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