Does Ron Paul seriously want "the abolition of the income tax and the Internal Revenue Service"?

Question

That's not going to do anything to help our country.

Abolishing the Income Tax and internal Revenue Service would destroy thousands of jobs-government jobs, H&R block, Jackson Hewitt, and many other smaller businesses that depend on doing other people's taxes for money to live!!

Answer 1

Ron Paul does want to eliminate the IRS and the Income Tax, because both those are abhorrent to the existence of private property, and the original intent of the Founding Fathers.

Does that mean that Paul is just going to shut it down and hope for the best? No.

You need to understand that Paul is a close friend of the von Mises institute, who have produced some of the finest economic minds in this century.

The proposition is to reduce the Federal Government's spending FIRST. By reducing the spending, liabilities, and unfunded liabilities the government will then go from a balanced budget to a budget surplus (think 1999 Clinton). Whereby the national debt is payed down with the surplus (which hasn't occurred since Andrew Jackson).

The program isn't going to be immediate, just like implementing the IRS, income tax, and National debt wasn't immediate -it was a process that accumulated over time.

The immediate benefit we will see under a Paul presidency is the reduction of spending and the return of accountable government.

Yes, "accountable government" is a buzz word and everybody should be wary of it. However, as President Paul will veto everything that Congress attempts to do that isn't explicitly enumerated in the Constitution (see Amendment X of the US Consitution).

Instead, the States will see their power returned to them. How cool would it be for gay marriage, abortion rights, and education to be returned to the local level? No longer will the Federal government overstep their Constitutional limits and interfere with the local, accountable government we find in our neighborhoods, communities, and states.

If you really want to see how the whole plan will work out, you need to set aside a lot of time and read the books and essays published by the von Mises Institute.

I'm not surprised that many people want to dismiss his ideas as insanity outright -afterall, Dr. Paul doesn't give those quick and easy answers that other politicians give. Instead, Paul gives us snippets of things to come, but if you truly want to see where he's coming from, you need to understand why he thinks the way he does.

You'll be hard pressed to find any other politician who can describe in excruciating detail the works of F. A. Hayek, Thorstein Veblen, Murray Rothbard, Milton Friedman, or many of the other economic titans.

Give Ron Paul a chance and explore where he's coming from before making a call. You might be surprised when you come out on the other side.


:::"Abolishing the Income Tax and internal Revenue Service would destroy thousands of jobs-government jobs, H&R block, Jackson Hewitt, and many other smaller businesses that depend on doing other people's taxes for money to live!!"

That is incorrect. Those people will still have jobs as people will still have a need for accountants. Government will still need to conduct accountability (such as revenue produced through tariffs, or corporate transactions), nor will they be fired outright. First, there will be a hiring freeze, and the people will retire or move to other government agencies. It's only the attack on the private citizen that Paul has concerned himself with.

Answer 2

labken -- I do realize from your other postings that you are anti-Ron Paul, so not sure if you made your conclusion before finding out the answers to questions like the one you are asking here. Anyway, Ron Paul's tax plan is not just excise taxes. It's that AND user fees. User fees, examples: 1. The Federal tax on gas is how the government pays for roads (R.Paul pointed out that this is abused, they collect more than what is needed for roads, and use the excess for other unrelated things.) 2. Passport fees - you pay a fee for the application and beaurocracy 3. Stamps - pay to run the post office / mail service 4. Federal fees on your airline tickets: pay for air traffic control .. All these are just a few examples of user fees that are currently in effect. Then excise taxes cover general expenses not covered by user fees. The overall effect was quoted in a few interviews. Income tax represents 40% of all federal revenues currently collected. Ron Paul plans to eliminate this entirely. So result: Federal revenue drops 40% Federal spending is cut 50% (Ron Paul recommends cutting it in half) Spending will be cut more than taxes, closing out the deficit. Now people may disagree with this: if you are a socialist and want large govt. programs, you should not vote for Ron Paul. Also, if you believe we should have large military campaigns, you should vote for somebody else. But his economic policy does not advocate any kind of deficit, or any type of unsound scam to make people feel good. There is nothing vague about what he wants to do, if you simply research the details. It is very close-minded to think that governments cannot exist with taxing income. Many states in the US have no income tax: e.g. Nevada (last I heard they were booming), NH, WY, Alaska, Florida, Texas, South Dakota, Tennessee, Washington ... and prior to 1913, income tax was not even part of the US Constitution.

Answer 3

Yes, he does. Along with a few other unconstitutional federal agencies.

The thinking here is that if the federal govt got out of the business of education, housing, tax collecting, labor relations, etc and let the individual states handle them, like the Constitution mandates, then there would be no need for the IRS.

It can work but many Americans don't realize it because most of us have been raised with the kind of thieving and nosy govt we have now, which has grown to a dangerous and unmanageable size. It would help our country very much, but it wouldn't help our career politicians at all. In fact, it would put them all out of business!

To the "hilarious" guy who keeps coming on the Paul posts and proclaiming that he doesn't know who Ron Paul is, well, that's wearing pretty thin. Its not true and its not even funny. In fact, the only statement you are making is that you are an imbecile who can't even conjure up an argument against Dr. Paul.

Answer 4

USCIS (formerly the INS) is one federal organization that's funded entirely by its own filing fees, rather than by taxes. In other words, the people who use the services are the ones who support it. Despite the often astronomical fees, USCIS is a horrid, inefficient, byzantine bureaucracy that makes any other part of the federal government feel like a luxury spa by comparison. If this is the preview of how the government is going to work when funded by people who "pay for the services", be afraid. Be very afraid.

UPDATED to address the poster below: While you tote Ron Paul's supposed committment to the Constitution, I hope you realize that a federal sales tax -- much more so than the income tax -- would be patently unconstitutional by virtue of violating the Commerce Clause. Moreover, the "lower" federal sales tax idea is pitched best to people who did poorly in math when they were children. If you pay a 20% sales tax on everything you buy, it doesn't translate into an equivalent of a 20% income tax. A federal sales tax may be lower in absolute percentage numbers than income tax, but it may result in people actually forking over more of their income to the government than they do now. Finally, making tax a function of one's SPENDING as opposed to one's INCOME would discourage that spending -- and thus have a chilling effect on the economy.

Answer 5

Services should be paid by those who use the services. The Government needs to be reduced in size. There are millions of acres owned by the Government that can be sold off to pay for operations. You will be a lot richer if your allowed to contol your own money.

Answer 6

He has said that he would support a gradual switch from the current income tax to a lower federal sales tax.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_positions_of_Ron_Paul

Answer 7

Wow!!!
You are actually giving support to Ron Paul.
You scare me.
If you believe that taxes & government nazis, are good for us working people, you are beating a Democrat Drum.
Go Ron Paul.

Answer 8

I think we should abolish the income tax and the IRS. We should have a universal sales tax in it's place. Obviously we have to pay somehow to support the federal government.

Answer 9

Yes he does...

Are you against a flat tax where everyone pays a fair amount?

Why do you think it is ok for our government to tax our labor?

Answer 10

He's been yapping about that for years....he is the Dennis Kucinich of the Republican Party....an opportunist who does nothing in terms of taking a leadership role in real legislation and uses higher office as an egotistical platform, with no tangible results for constituents.