The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax - Albert Einstein.
Fri, 03/05/2010 - 02:29
"The war against illegal plunder has been fought since the beginning of the world. But how is... legal plunder to be identified? Quite simply. See if the law takes from some persons what belongs to them, and gives it to other persons to whom it does not belong. See if the law benefits one citizen at the expense of another by doing what the citizen himself cannot do without committing a crime. Then abolish this law without delay ... If such a law is not abolished immediately it will spread, multiply and develop into a system." - Frederic Bastiat.
The premise of an income tax, that government has a right to the fruits of your labor, is antithetical to a free society. An income tax implies that a government owns you and allows you to keep a portion of what you make.
No judge would ever challenge the constitutionality of a $1+ trillion revenue source. But the constitutionality of the 16th Amendment is clearly questionable, if for no other reason than it is not an apportioned tax (Article 1 Section 2). Even if an income tax is constitutional, certainly a progressive tax cannot be. Article I Section 9 states "No capitation, or other direct, tax shall be laid, unless in proportion to the census or enumeration herein before directed to be taken."
The 16th Amendment was originally billed as a minor imposition on only the wealthiest Americans. But like many government taxes and programs, once established the income tax slowly but inexorably expanded. In its first year Federal income taxes derived half its revenue from John D. Rockefeller and only a few Americans paid it. By 1939, 26 years after its passage, 5% of Americans were required to file an income tax return. Today over 80% are required to file.
I support a scheduled reduction of income taxes leading to the repeal of the 16th Amendment.
By John Dennis.
John Dennis, an accomplished businessman and entrepreneur, has been a pro-liberty Republican for a quarter century.
Born in Jersey City, the son of a longshoreman and a city hall clerk, he grew up in one of the city’s toughest public housing projects.
After graduating from Fordham University with a degree in business administration, John co-founded Humanscale, which became one of the world's top 10 design firms, specializing in office ergonomics.
After a varied career in global development and marketing, John created Foundation Real Estate, a San Francisco-based investment company with domestic and international holdings.
He is the founder of the San Francisco chapter of the Republican Liberty Caucus and currently the head of the Campaign for Liberty San Francisco.
John is a board member of the Republican Liberty Caucus California, has served as an alternate on the San Francisco Republican Central Committee and is a member of the National Rifle Association.
His campaign experience includes voter contact coordination with Mike DeNunzio for San Francisco Supervisor and Harmeet Dhillon for California Assembly
In 2008, he served as Phonebank and Get Out the Vote Director for the Ron Paul Presidential campaign in San Francisco.
John, his wife Heather and daughter Devan, make their home in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco.
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