The Bernie Buzz Update: Profitable Corporations Duck Taxes

[Jefferson23]

Sen. Bernie Sanders this week issued a new report that provides a fresh glimpse into the far-reaching corporate tax avoidance strategies of large and profitable companies represented by the Business Roundtable, including what he calls the "legalized tax fraud” of sheltering profits in offshore tax havens. The report shows for the first time how more than half of the companies represented by the Business Roundtable are collectively holding more than $1 trillion in profits in offshore tax haven countries where money is not subject to U.S. taxes. A number of huge corporations – including General Electric, Boeing, Duke Energy and Verizon – not only have paid nothing in federal income tax in recent years, they received refunds from the IRS.

“Instead of sheltering profits in the Cayman Islands and other offshore tax havens, the largest corporations in this country must pay their fair share of taxes so that our country has the revenue we need to rebuild America and reduce the deficit,” Bernie said. "At a time when corporations are making record-breaking profits, while the middle class is disappearing and senior poverty is on the rise, the last thing we should be doing is giving huge tax breaks to profitable corporations that don’t need it.” Bernie will soon reintroduce legislation to crack down on corporate tax avoidance by making sure that profits shifted to offshore tax haven subsidiaries are taxed at the top U.S. corporate tax rate.

Legalized Tax Fraud : How Top US Corporations Continue to Profit Through Offshore Tax Havens

http://www.budget.senate.gov/democratic/public/_cache/files/1b714994-7903-4a80-bb5e-47b6544d515d/legalized-tax-fraud.pdf

[Thinkingabout]

1. Bernie is in a position to take some of this on as a good project.

I would hope he starts sponsoring bills to get this stopped.

[Jefferson23]

2. Seems to me he is going for it. What does he have to lose? n/t

[tokenlib]

3. Bernie is the voice in the wilderness...while too many dems are silent...

...and Hillary plots and plans and stays silent on the stuff that really matters..like defending the disabled on Social Security and the corporate/Wall Street insanity....