Thursday, April 27, 2006

Left-Wingers Who Hide From the Taxman

Here's a little extract from a speech Peter Schweizer gave:
The Kennedys domiciled Merchandize Mart, with more than $600 million, on the Pacific Island nation of Fiji. Has Ted Kennedy ever been to Fiji? I don’t think there’s any record that he has. But they picked Fiji because it avoids IRS scrutiny, the sort that you would get if you domiciled the trust in the United States.

The reality today is that Ted Kennedy receives money from trusts established numerous times, from 1926, 1936, 1978, 1987, and 1997, and those trusts of course are designed to avoid paying the inheritance tax.

What does this actually mean in practical terms? Let me give you the bottom line. Ted Kennedy supports an inheritance tax of 49%. Forty-nine percent of what you have goes to the IRS after you die. Now, what rate did the Kennedys pay? The Kennedys have transferred $300 million, this is all according to their records, they have transferred $300 million from one generation to the other, and out of that, they have paid $132,000 in taxes, which is nowhere near 49%? Actually it’s .004 percent. The Kennedys, like a lot of other people on the left, love the idea of paying taxes for other people. When it comes to themselves, they’re not so interested.
Who ever said those who promote socialism want to pay taxes?