Obama Tax Hike response help needed (no, I'm not a troll)

[rightsideout]

I need more help again responding to FB friends who are Obama haters.

Here is the latest Meme thing that went out today:

Effective 1/1/13 ALL working Americans were hit with a 2 percent tax increase. Social Security went from 4.2 percent to 6.2 percent!

The Meme has a picture of Obama winking, next to the text. It was put out by the "Christians against Obama's Re-Election."

Any ideas on how to counter this? No, I'm not a troll. I was accused of that before asking a similar question several months ago. Fortunately, several of you did help me out and I was able to respond back with an intelligent response.

For this one, I was going to counter with "Reagan raised taxes 13 times." But I'd like something a bit more current with more bite to fling back at this guy.

Thanks

[Lil Missy]

1. It was a temporary reduction that has now expired. n/t

[magical thyme]

2. President Obama did not raise the SS tax.

He gave us a one-year 2% tax break on FICA, which was subsequently extended through 2012. That tax break has expired and we are back to the paying the full 6% tax.

If your FB "friends" look at their old pay stubs, they will see that until something like 2010, they paid 6% FICA.

So it's not a tax increase. It is the end of a tax holiday program.

You can also suggest to them that if they want to see a permanent return to 4% FICA, they should push the President and congress to Lift The CAP. Explain to them that income over xyz dollars (don't remember the current cap) doesn't have *any* FICA tax on it. That only losers like us pay FICA on all of our income. That if we can get congress to LIFT THE CAP and make the wealthy deadbeats pay their fair share, everybody elses' FICA tax can be permanently cut *and* social security will remain fully funded without any need to cut benefits for anybody.

[MrSlayer]

3. It was a temporary stimulative measure.

And it sunsetted. Technically it's not a tax increase but the effect is the same.

We would have been better off keeping the cut and raising or eliminating the cap.

[Enrique]

4. tell "Christians against Obama's Re-Election"

that they need a new name.

[ProSense]

6. .

[unblock]

7. you win this thread!

[wandy]

5. Start by telling them.

"Taxes are what we pay for civilized society"

Oliver Wendell Holmes.

End by telling them.

"Man up or go live in a cave in the woods"

The Moose.

[pa28]

8. Ask them to name some Republicans in favor of extending the holiday.

FICA was returning to it's regular level no matter who won the election. These are the same people who enjoyed tax cuts after the 2008 election while insisting their taxes went up 'because of Obama'.

Can't argue with them using facts so usually it's best to just smile, nod and keep them away from sharp objects.

[bluestate10]

9. Obama fought for the initial reduction of the payroll tax from 6.2 to 4.2. Republicans fought

against the reduction and the renewal of the reduction last year. The reduction was done to stimulate the economy, but with the economy now growing, the payroll tax holiday became a victim. President Obama wanted to renew it, but democrats worried about the impact of the reduction on Social Security were not going to cover his back. In the end, republicans got their way to eliminate the payroll tax holiday.

[ProSense]

10. Here's what I'm not understanding:

More that 130 million adults voted in 2008. Nearly 130 million adults voted in 2012.

How many of these people, who are obviously a big chunk of the workforce, missed the fact that their payroll taxes went down a couple of years ago under Obama? It's likely they checked to see why it did then, and learned it was temporary. Even if they didn't and had no clue it was temporary, why on earth would returning to the original payroll tax be a huge shock?

I find it hard to believe that anyone is legitimately complaining about this.

[yardwork]

23. They are being told it is a tax increase by the right wing noise machine.

It's particularly ironic in this case because

1. The original decrease happened during the Obama administration. Did the same people who are complaining now give him credit then for "lowering" our taxes? Guess not, or they wouldn't be "Christians against re-electing Obama."

2. Obama wanted to continue the payroll tax holiday. It was the Republicans in Congress who insisted on letting it expire.

[Sherman A1]

11. It was Congress that did not extend this 2% tax holiday

(which I thought to have been a real dumb idea from the start) not the President. Congress holds the purse strings in our Government, The President can only enforce the laws that they provide to him.

[WhollyHeretic]

12. Obama wanted it extended one more year (it was always meant to be short term) Republicans refused

[zbdent]

13. question ... did the person say ANYTHING nice about when Obama

REDUCED the tax by 2 percent???

Plus, Bush's Iraq invasion and occupation cost taxpayers $13,070 PER SECOND. Use that in calculations about how X "entitlement" is costing something.

[denverbill]

14. Obama wanted to extend it but gave up when Republickers opposed it.

http://miami.cbslocal.com/2012/12/27/payroll-tax-likely-to-rise-after-fiscal-cliff/
...
President Obama had originally sought to extend the payroll tax holiday, but Republican opposition caused the president to effectively scuttle the plan. The tax will hit all Americans, but working Americans the hardest.
...

[Recursion]

16. Did people sleep through the past two years? Did people really not know this was coming?

Do people not have an HR department?

[leftstreet]

17. Why didn't Obama explain this in one of his Fireside Chats?

oh wait...

[WilliamPitt]

18. "Temporary"

is the key word here.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

19. Why haven't you acknowledged any of the

responses in this thread?

[hrmjustin]

21. We don't hate you, we just don't want conservatives to join this site.

[RB TexLa]

22. The president had extenstion of it in his first proposal. Granted he didn't fight hard for it but

he did have it in there. The republicans said no to it.