Two of America's Richest Assail Bush Tax Cut
Tue May 20, 5:23 PM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) - You would think two of the
wealthiest Americans would have no problem with a tax
cut that would put thousands, if not millions, of
dollars in their pockets.
But billionaire investors Warren Buffett (news - web
sites) and George Soros, Nos. 2 and 24 on Forbes
Magazine's list of the 400 richest Americans, both
railed on Tuesday against President Bush (news - web
sites)'s plan to deepen income tax cuts and eliminate
taxes on corporate dividends.
Bush, who has campaigned around the country touting
the plan as a way of creating jobs and boosting stock
prices, is pressing for final agreement this week as
Congress wrangles to fit the package into a $350
billion limit set by the Senate.
In an opinion article in the Washington Post, Buffett,
the chairman of holding company Berkshire Hathaway,
said he already pays about the same income tax rate as
his receptionist -- about 30 percent.
But Buffett said with the planned dividend tax cut, he
conceivably could pay a mere 3 percent in income
taxes. Recalling President John F. Kennedy's
declaration that Americans should "pay any price, bear
any burden" for the country, Buffett said a 3 percent
income tax rate "seems a bit light."
"Supporters of making dividends tax free like to paint
critics as promoters of class warfare. The fact is,
however, their proposal promotes class welfare. For my
class," wrote Buffett, whose wealth is estimated at
$36 billion.
Soros, renowned for both his swashbuckling speculative
bets on currencies as well as his philanthropic work,
dismissed the tax cuts. He said they would not revive
the U.S. economy in the short-term but were only aimed
at helping the rich get richer.
"This move is designed not to have much impact now.
It's designed to have an impact over an extended
period and it's basically using the recession to
redistribute income to the wealthy," Soros said in an
interview with financial news network CNBC.
"I think that is really not a very effective way of
using a deficit," said Soros, whose wealth is
estimated at $6 billion. |
