Letting the Cronies Off

From americanprogressaction.org
August 10, 2004

Just one day after attending a church service where the topic was the excesses of wealth (http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0808-06.htm) , President Bush joked about taxes, saying "the really rich people figure out how to dodge taxes (http://www.wtopnews.com/?sid=243903&nid=25) anyway." The statement was a sharp departure from his past tough talk on tax enforcement. Just four months ago, the president claimed he wanted "to make sure that tax cheaters are found (http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/04/20040415-7.html) , make sure the IRS gets after those who don't pay taxes; make sure that the system is fair for those of us who do pay taxes. We want everybody paying their fair share." Unfortunately, though, yesterday's quip was far more indicative of the White House's record on taxes than the tough talk from before. The Bush administration has simultaneously reduced audits of the biggest corporations (many of which finance its political campaigns) while increasing scrutiny of indivduals. More specifically, that increased scrutiny has fallen on the working poor, even as high-income and corporate tax cheating increases.