It Doesn’t Matter

It doesn't matter if you are liberal or conservative, Democrat or Republican. Sebastian Mallaby believes the government owns your money when you die. Oh sure, you paid all the taxes due on it when you earned it, but when you kick the bucket don't even think of passing it on to your kids. Because it belongs to the government then. It is not your's or your heirs', it's mine, all mine.

It doesn't matter if you are liberal or conservative, Democrat or Republican. There is no possible excuse for doing what Congress is poised to do this week: Abolish the estate tax.

The federal government faces a future of expanding deficits. Thanks to the baby bust and medical inflation, spending is projected to rise by nearly 3 percent of gross domestic product by 2030, a growth equivalent to the doubling of today's Medicare program. What is the dumbest possible response to this? Take a source of revenue and abolish it outright.

Let's see; stop stealing money from a law-abiding taxpayer just because they died? Sounds about right to me. There is one extraordinary part in Mallaby's rather silly "give me the money" rant:

But now the House has voted to repeal the estate tax, and the Senate may do the same this week. Republicans are picking up support from renegade Democrats, such as Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, Bill Nelson of Florida, Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Max Baucus of Montana. Several more may go over to the dark side if a "compromise" bill, which would achieve nearly everything that abolitionists dream of, is introduced in the Senate. President Bush, who has already muscled a temporary repeal of the estate tax into law, would be delighted to sign a bill making abolition permanent.

You see, in Mallaby's world if your are a Democrat who does not favor excessive taxation you are a renegade. If you want to cut taxes you are joining the "Dark Side". Quick, Luke Sebastian! Hand me my light saber!

UPDATE: Others taking a somewhat dim view of Mallaby's arguments: Outside the Beltway, QandO, Carol Platt Liebow and The Sundries Shack.