BREAKING: Obama to take executive actions to make it more difficult for corporations to dodge taxes

[Cali_Democrat]

Treasury takes steps to discourage offshore tax-shifting inversions

The Obama administration on Monday announced long-awaited executive actions to try to discourage companies from reincorporating abroad to reduce their U.S. taxes.

The steps -- technical revisions to the tax code -- will "substantially reduce the economic benefits" of firms that try so-called corporate tax inversions in the future, Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew said.

But he and President Obama continued to call on Congress to address the issue either through a broad overhaul of corporate taxes or targeted legislation, which would be more effective in curtailing a maneuver that has become more popular among corporations seeking to avoid the high U.S. tax rate.

"We’ve recently seen a few large corporations announce plans to exploit this loophole, undercutting businesses that act responsibly and leaving the middle class to pay the bill, and I’m glad that Secretary Lew is exploring additional actions to help reverse this trend," Obama said.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-corporate-tax-inversion-treasury-lew-20140922-story.html

[Andy823]

1. K&R nt

[sheshe2]

2. KnR

And he forges on alone. Cali_Democrat.

[lovemydog]

3. K & R big time.

I support President Obama. And I'm proud to say it.

[baldguy]

4. More proof that the people who say Obama is just like Bush are FUCKING INSANE.

[FSogol]

7. ^^^THIS^^^

[LawDeeDah]

33. amen!

I know when someone says that it's meant to ruffle feathers and bring forth angry responses, but I actually like it because it supplies some really good laughs. I feel the same when the 'there is no difference between Hillary and Obama' dirty limerick is repeated ad nauseum.

Apparently the President has more than one doppelganger.

[Starry Messenger]

5. k&r

[99Forever]

6. I'll believe it when it happens.

And it has to be more than window dressing.

Please, make me eat my words.

[marym625]

9. I'm with you eom

[Cali_Democrat]

11. The rules are in place stating today. nt

[Cha]

23. Save your breath, Cali.. that one gets on President Obama

threads just to take a dump. And, who really cares what that kind of person thinks?

[marym625]

58. excuse me?

When I ever gotten on an Obama threads "just to take a dump"?

[Cha]

64. I was not referring to you, marym.

[marym625]

65. Glad to hear that

Your comment was on a reply to me.

[Cha]

66. Oh I see what you mean.. my bad. Sorry!

[marym625]

68. Thank you

Accepted

[Cali_Democrat]

10. The rules are in place starting today and even include pending deals

Believe it now?

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/23/business/treasury-creates-new-hurdles-to-inversion-moves.html?_r=0

[99Forever]

12. I'm less interested in "rules" than results.

Again, I'll believe it when I see it. Too damn many broken promises from this President to take anything he says at face value.

[Cali_Democrat]

13. I don't think you even read the articles. nt

[99Forever]

14. The proof isn't in "the articles," it's out here in the real world.

Talk talk is dirt cheap.

[Cali_Democrat]

15. LOL

I doubt you even know what tax inversion is or how these rules would work.

[99Forever]

16. And you'd be fucking wrong.

Ask if I care what you think.

[marym625]

18. my goodness

Don't let him get to you.

I read the article and others. I haven't been able to find the actual rules, yet. I also know what tax inversions are and I am still with you. Let's see the rules and see if they work. Even all the articles I've read say "should" and "may" make it harder.

I hope they do and will.

[99Forever]

20. I don't suffer fools that...

... insult my intelligence, well, by implying that if I "don't understand something" when in reality, I simply disagree with them. It's nothing more than a cheap shot and it says more about the one using it than their target.

[marym625]

21. Yeah, I hate that...

Besides it being insulting, it shows how little they want to understand about the opposing point or lack of their ability to explain their point. Or both

[Drunken Irishman]

57. There is no opposing point in saying, "I'll believe it when I see it..."

That isn't a point. It's a remark. There is no facts associated with it and no evidence that it has any substance beyond being a snide remark.

[marym625]

59. The point was

We will have to wait to see if this actually causes change. That's a point of view and it opposes the point that the rules are in place so it will cause change. A point of view isn't a fact other than the fact the person holds that point of view. Maybe if that person was asked why they hold that point of view, rather than getting snide remarks in response, they could have backed it with facts. Even the OP says, "to try to discourage"

I don't understand how we can all be going toward the same goal and can't discuss without attacking. The person said they're skeptical but hope it works. In response they're accused of not reading or understanding. Now I am accused of going to Obama threads "just to take a dump" by someone else. Something I have never done.

Maybe, if the question was asked, "what makes you think this" instead of a condescending response, there could have been an actual discussion. Or maybe allow people their opinions without being called stupid. .

My point of view is that too many people on DU think it's their way or no way.

[Drunken Irishman]

60. The point was to be snarky and rude and dismiss Obama.

There as no substance to it. It was a throwaway remark to attack the President.

Nothing about that comment says the poster actually intends to wait for this to develop to formulate a viewpoint. It's basically saying Obama lies about a lot of shit and I don't believe him - and won't until I see it.

http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/I'll+believe+it+when+I+see+it

something that you say to show that you do not think something will happen, and you will not believe it until it does happen.

It's clear this poster is not impartial to this and has already concluded it's a lie.

[marym625]

61. They also said

"Please make me eat my words"

And besides that, so what? Is President Obama never supposed to be criticized? Is it wrong to be disappointed and to question while still remaining hopeful that you're wrong? Does that mean that because there's a disagreement you should immediately start calling someone stupid?

For dog's sake. I am absolutely blown away at this. You post something then you better expect there will be people that disagree with you. There are valid reasons to not believe what is said will happen, will happen. Are the rules of DU suddenly that you can't comment unless you 100% agree with the post?

As far as facts, neither the OP nor the linked article state what the new rules are. The fact it says "try to" proves that it is not a fact it will work.

The comment was reasonable. New rules that will "try to" cause change means we have to wait to see if they actually DO. To voice that you won't believe it until you see it and state that you hope they do work is a reasonable thing to say. To be angry because someone disagrees with you is not reasonable.

[bobduca]

67. probably the worst of the bunch

Last edited Fri Sep 26, 2014, 08:39 AM - Edit history (1)

[randome]

27. Maybe you'd prefer that Obama use his secret weapon instead of executive actions.

[hr][font color="blue"][center]Birds are territorial creatures.
The lyrics to the songbird's melodious trill go something like this:
"Stay out of my territory or I'll PECK YOUR GODDAMNED EYES OUT!"[/center][/font][hr]

[treestar]

36. FFS

Never be satisfied with anything.

[uponit7771]

41. Because Obama is a dictator? So if you don't see close to what you want and congress is standing in

... the way of it..

Obama will NO DOUBT get the blame...

as usual

I've stop listening long ago to that line of thinking

[99Forever]

42. Let the excuses begin.

Perhaps it might make more sense to make the changes FIRST, see what effect they have, before bragging about what they are going to do.

[uponit7771]

62. lol... congress is standing in the way = Obama to blame = bashing... more non objective critique

... vs an unbiased way of looking at what is happening

[cantbeserious]

46. Agreed

eom

[FSogol]

8. K&R. n/t

[flamingdem]

17. great

[Cha]

19. Why don't these Owners of corps who want to avoid "the high US tax rate" go live somewhere else?

Oh, I know.. they want to Bundy Mooch while they have the advantages of living in America and dare to call themselves patriots.

from your link, Cali.. Thank you~

"Some multinational corporations including pharmaceutical firm AbbVie Inc. and Burger King Worldwide Inc. have agreed to buy smaller companies in foreign countries with much lower tax rates and move their headquarters there, sheltering billions of dollars from U.S. taxes.

The Obama administration has questioned the "economic patriotism" of those companies, saying the moves were not done for economic reasons but simply to avoid paying their fair share of U.S. taxes for scientific research, roads and other publicly-funded items"

Yeah!

[bigwillq]

22. Good.

[woo me with science]

24. Now, where's that emoticon?

Ah, here it is:

[pampango]

25. CBC: Tim Hortons, Burger King merger fallout: U.S. cracks down on tax inversions

The Obama administration cracked down Monday on certain overseas corporate mergers and acquisitions, aiming to curb American companies from shifting their ownership abroad to shirk paying U.S. taxes. New regulations from the Treasury Department will make these co-called corporate inversions less lucrative by barring creative techniques that companies use to lower their tax bill. Additionally, the U.S. will make it harder for companies to move overseas in the first place by tightening the ownership requirements they must meet.

"This action will significantly diminish the ability of inverted companies to escape U.S. taxation," Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said. He added that for some companies considering inversions, the new measures would mean inverting would "no longer make economic sense."

Democrats generally supported the action as the best the administration could do without action from Congress while Republicans faulted the administration for not making a greater effort to work with Congress to enact comprehensive corporate tax reform.

"The administration has made a good effort but administrative action can only go so far," Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement. "This rule makes some companies think twice before inverting, but legislation is sorely needed."

Republicans pointed out that the U.S. has the highest corporate tax rate in the developed world and argued that Obama should be pursuing efforts to simplify the tax code, not punish companies.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/tim-hortons-burger-king-merger-fallout-u-s-cracks-down-on-tax-inversions-1.2774913

republicans don't like this and, once again, push for lower corporate taxes.

[whatthehey]

28. I agree with the Republicans in this case, as far as their alternate suggestion

Corporate taxes should be lowered in nominal rate and simplified.

Here's how I would do it. Cos should pay the lowest of:

20% of their net income (EBIT) as reported to shareholders
10% of their gross profit as reported to shareholders
2% of their gross revenue.

I wonder how much zero-tax folks in GE really want lower and simpler corporate taxes?

[pampango]

29. It seems to me that the counties with lower corporate taxes have few exemptions so that

corporations end up paying more in taxes even though the tax rate is lower.

I doubt that the "zero-tax folks at GE" really want a lower tax rate if it results in them actually paying taxes that they don't pay now.

[dipsydoodle]

38. AstraZeneca, Shire dive as U.S. tax move punctures deal hopes

Shares in drugmakers AstraZeneca (AZN.L) and Shire (SHP.L) fell sharply on Tuesday after the U.S. Treasury took steps to curb "inversion" deals that allow companies to escape high U.S. taxes by reincorporating abroad.

The move could jeopardise an agreed deal for AbbVie (ABBV.N) to buy Shire for (33.54 billion pounds) and deter Pfizer (PFE.N) from making another attempt to acquire AstraZeneca, after a $118 billion takeover attempt failed in May.

The slide in both companies shares wiped out around $8 billion in their combined market value, with AstraZeneca down 5.0 percent and Shire losing 6.1 percent by 1115 GMT (12:15 p.m. BST). AbbVie lost 4.6 percent in pre-market U.S. dealings.

Smith & Nephew (SN.L) and Swiss biotech group Actelion (ATLN.VX), two other perennial targets of bid speculation, fell 3.5 percent and 2.2 percent respectively.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/09/23/uk-taxinversion-treasury-astrazeneca-idUKKCN0HI0HN20140923

[librechik]

37. I would raise taxes to 35% after the first million& give huge tax breaks for hiring in the US

and building new factories here. With daycare facilities, and worker ownership an option.

[madokie]

26. I got your back Mr. President

I'll take care of this side you concentrate on that side.

[Atman]

30. It's not the fucking law, it's the philosophy

Capitalism has reached its zenith. This was foretold decades ago. Perfect Capitalism destroys itself. Once you've got every shareholder and every consumer in your grips, what is left? Nothing. You are required by your corporate charter to keep making profits. When you've ripped the guts out of your entire system, where are these profits coming from?

It was an idea. It failed. It utterly failed.

[marym625]

69. excellent!

I wish everyone would understand that

[malthaussen]

31. Great. Now enforce it. n/t

[Pisces]

32. Excellent!!

[librechik]

34. YAY!! I knew he could.

IRS is executive. He could use the tax code to stop them.

Hope this works. And the 1% don't figure out how to block him or use it against him

[GoCubsGo]

35. Now we just need to keep the republicans from taking the Senate.

If they control all of Congress, they will reverse that and every other executive order in a heartbeat through their reprehensible laws. GOTV.

[grahamhgreen]

39. Good but does "reduce the benefits" mean they still benefit?

[littlemissmartypants]

40. FFS!

THERE IS NO MIDDLE CLASS!

THE MIDDLE CLASS IS DEAD!

Someone please inform the president, the rooms full of yes men moles and his cabinet.

Love, Peace and Shelter.
~ littlemissmartypants

[progressoid]

49. Exactly. It's the former middle class.

[BlueJac]

43. WTF

what about health care, social security and medicare? Nukes.....YES WE CAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I am tired of Congress and their entitlements!!!!!!!!!!!!

[muntrv]

44. Good, since the teabaggin' Congress won't close the tax loopholes.

[Iliyah]

45. K & R

Get a gop senate and president the middle class will remain dead forever.

GOTV 2014 & 2016

[colsohlibgal]

47. Encouraging

We'll see if anything much comes of it.

[Man from Pickens]

48. It's the loopholes, stupid

They will simply move on to the next loophole.

Let's start with the big picture - how is it that almost all of the largest corporations in the US pay little to no taxes, and in some case actually "pay" negative taxes? Especially since the US now has the highest (nominal) corporate tax rate in the world?

It's because the tax code has been overwhelmingly engineered to produce these outcomes. Those corporations sitting on the outside, not able to exert enough pull to get the tax code changed to their advantage, are subsidizing all the others - often even their own competitors.

Make the code simple enough that any citizen can check a company's profits and calculate how much they should correctly be paying in taxes with a single, simple equation. This level of simplicity is needed to restore some level of honesty to the system.

[red dog 1]

50. K&R...Thanks for posting

One in four corporations pay no federal income taxes at all

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2013/sep/26/bernie-s/sanders-one-out-four-corporations-pay-no-taxes/

[orpupilofnature57]

51. Better late than Never, Financial Terrorists .

[C Moon]

52. Nice. The GOP is going to LOVE this. :)

[Tarheel_Dem]

53. Hey! I hear Bernie Sanders has much more influence, and mucho "connections" than Obama. Wouldn't

this be a great opportunity for him to put those powerful weapons to work? I'd love to see him take up this issue, and get it through both houses of Congress, and onto the president's desk.

[AllyCat]

54. High US tax rate that none of them pay

[Lenomsky]

55. Sounds like a plan .. luck!

[Mnpaul]

56. Shove the buy American act down their throats

If Medtronic wants to go to Ireland, our federal healthcare dollars should go to an American company instead. Same goes for Burger King, get off our military bases. We will get an America company to do it.

Not one dime for any of these bastards.

[dmosh42]

63. See i we hear anymore about it after the elections are over.