Tax Fairness

President Obama today was cited in various places as having called for "additional revenue" from "closing loopholes," and used as his demogogic mantra that wealthy people should not pay lower tax rates than "bus drivers or cops" because they have "accountants and lawyers."

Here's a news flash:   They don't.   The top quintile of taxpayers pays a higher federal tax rate than the fourth quintile, which pays more than the third, which pays more than the second, which pays more than the first.   The system already is progressive, and steeply so.   Here's a great chart from the Tax Policy Center showing the combined effect of income taxes, payroll taxes, and corporate taxes:

I'll vouch for this... I'll admit that I'm safely in the top quintile, and I pay at a rate right in between the top of the blue bar on the right and the top of the brown bar on the right... i.e., a little bit lower than the people way at the top, but higher than nearly everyone else.

So, you libs, if you want to argue that our tax code ought to be more progressive, fine.   Make that argument.   But don't lie and argue as if it isn't already steeply progressive.