David Cay Johnston, Reuters columnist, joins “Viewpoint” host Eliot Spitzer to discuss his article on “The Fortunate 400,” or those families who reported the 400 highest incomes on their 2009 tax return according to the IRS.
Johnston takes issue with the Republican argument that cutting taxes on the wealthy leads to job creation. The capital gains tax rate, which was lowered during the Bush administration, is currently around 15 percent. “In 2003 when this happened [we were told] that if we lowered the capital gains rate, it was going to create jobs. Well, we’ve got nine years of experience now – where are the jobs? If this is a good strategy, we should be in a country where we’re desperate to find enough workers instead of having millions of people out of work. It’s a failed strategy, the evidence is in: Congress needs to act,” says Johnston.
