A bit earlier today we published another one of these pieces in which a very wealthy member of Congress complained about how his family is just barely scraping by on hundreds of thousands of dollars in income (this one makes substantial outside income). But as TPM Reader MK points out, his explanation (whatever mockery it may be entitled to) is complete nonsense. In this case, I could figure that out because small business finances are pretty much the only ones I have a really intimate and detailed understanding of. Or actually, any real understanding of.
From TPM Reader MK …
I’m pretty sure Rep. Fleming’s comments make no sense whatsoever.
Wouldn’t the Buffett Tax only count toward households (or perhaps individuals, I’m not sure how it’s written) that report more than $1 million in income? That isn’t $1 million in revenue; that’s $1 million in income, which means profit after expenses. Fleming is claiming that after he pays all his business expenses he only has $600,000 to feed his family, etc. Which means, as I understand it, that his actual income is less than $1 million and therefore the Buffett Tax wouldn’t apply.
He also counts that 600k toward investing in new employees, btw, which implies that there’s literally no distinction between his business’ earnings and budget and his family’s personal income and budget. Which also makes no sense. Is there nobody capable of asking these people coherent fiscal questions?
