Pirate's Cove

I debated whether to add this to the previous post or make it a standalone. It’s important enough to stand alone

Democrats Drop Carried Interest as Sinema Paves Way for Tax Vote

The path was nearly cleared for one of the cornerstones of President Joe Biden’s domestic agenda after Democrats agreed on a revised version of their tax and climate bill.

But it came at a price: To get the support of Senator Kyrsten Sinema — the pivotal Democratic vote in the 50-50 Senate — a levy on wealthy hedge fund managers had to be abandoned.

So the Democrats agreed to drop a provision that would have narrowed a tax break for carried interest, meaning wealthy private equity managers and venture capitalists will continue to be able to pay a lower capital gains rate on one of their main forms of compensation. Lawmakers will also alter a 15% minimum tax on corporations and add a new 1% excise tax on stock buybacks.

Democrats have been eager to finish work on the legislation, even though it’s been drastically scaled back from Biden’s original vision for an expansive tax and social spending package that would advance the party’s climate goals.

So, unless the Congressional Parlimentarian comes back and says “no, this is not a bill that can be done via reconciliation”, it will pass. If there are issues

That means things like the domestic content requirements for cars eligible for electric vehicle tax credits, caps on insulin out-of-pocket costs and penalties for drug companies raising prices higher than inflation could be struck. That would dilute the bill even further.

Perhaps one of the Democrats will resist over the IRS provision? Like the one which will increase the number of agents by 87,000, which means middle class individuals and businesses will receive more scrutiny and audits. And

(Forbes) The IRS has been working on digital asset compliance for years, but an infusion of funds could allow the agency to rather significantly step up its efforts, as well as its criminal investigations.

So, if you have some sort of crypto, the IRS will want to have a conversation with you. Does anyone, other than the White House, think that The Rich will be the ones receiving the scrutiny of the IRS? You know, the people who donate to politicians and have the ability to fight back?

Maybe Comrade Bernie will vote against the bill?

Bernie Sanders pummels Manchin’s inflation deal for 2nd day in a row, saying it does ‘virtually nothing’ to help families

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont continues lambasting the $740 billion climate, energy, and tax package that Democrats are hoping to pass in the coming days, arguing it doesn’t amount to major relief to American families.

“As currently written, this is an extremely modest bill that does virtually nothing to address the enormous crises facing the working families of our country,” Sanders said in a Wednesday floor speech. “It falls far short of what the American people want, what they need, and what they are begging us to do.”

It marks the second day in a row that the Vermont independent has advocated for a wide range of Democratic initiatives from the now-defunct Build Back Better Act — including the extension of the child tax credit, universal pre-K, medicare expansion, and tuition-free community college. With regards to climate change, Sanders read a letter Wednesday from the Center for Biological Diversity that called the proposed bill a “climate suicide pact.”

“In my view, we have got to do everything possible to take on the greed of the fossil fuel industry, not give billions of dollars in corporate welfare to an industry that has been destroying our planet,” the Senator said.

At the end of the day, despite all his bluster in wanting more government, he’ll vote for it. So, unless one or more Democrats who are up for re-election this year in purple states say “no”, it will pass. And you, the U.S. middle class, will pay for it.