Assigned Questions to Address in Your Initial Post: (American Government)
- Are you in favor of reducing expenditures in the federal budget in any of the main spending categories identified above such as Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Defense, etc.? If so, which ones, and explain why you believe spending in those areas should be reduced and whether you believe if doing so will have any adverse effects on Americans.
- Are you in favor of raising taxes to help reduce the amount of overspending in the budget? Explain why or why not. If you are in favor of raising taxes, identify who you believe should pay higher taxes: All Americans? Just wealthy Americans? What about corporations? If you believe wealthy Americans should pay more, define wealthy. For example, how much annual family income do you consider to be wealthy?
- President Biden and the Democrats recently passed a $740 billion spending bill that will lower prescription drug costs for seniors on Medicare, will lower health insurance costs for people who don’t have access to insurance through their employer or family plans, will invest $300 billion in renewable energy infrastructure such as wind and solar, and provide up to a $7,500 tax credit to Americans for purchases of certain new and used electric vehicles. A tax credit means the amount of income tax you owe the federal government will be reduced by the amount of the tax credit you receive. This spending bill is deficit-neutral, meaning it will not add to the annual budget deficit or national debt. It helps pays for itself by including a provision requiring corporations that make over $1 billion in annual income to pay a minimum 15% income tax. Previously, many rich corporations paid no income tax at all because of special provisions in the tax laws that benefited them. It will also increase enforcement of tax payments owed by Americans with complex tax returns who previously were able to avoid taxes owed because the government did not have the resources to verify the accuracy of their tax returns. Do you tend to agree or disagree with the provisions of this bill? Explain why or why not.
