Replace All Federal Taxes on Income with the Fair Tax Act , HR 25

Daschle tax problem creates 0ppportunity for Fair Tax

Each time a high profile person has income tax problems we have an opportunity to promote Fair Tax. I just posted a reply on the Washington Post Site concerning an article about the current Senate investigation into Daschle. The link is listed here:

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/01/30/daschle_pays_100k_in...

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Permalink Reply by Pat Conroy on February 1, 2009 at 1:21pm

I completely agree! Of course, Daschle isn't alone. Geithner's problems were widely reported. Charlie Rangel has his own problems -- and he is the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, which is responsible for writing all the tax legislation.

These people should be the most knowledgeable about the income tax. They either cheated or income tax laws are too complex for even the most knowledgeable people to understand. I suspect, with these high profile people, it was a matter of playing the audit lottery.

Audit Lottery: The idea that one can fudge on taxes and not get caught. And even if caught, all it costs is a little interest and maybe a penalty, which can be appealed. That's different from outright fraud where getting caught may mean heavy fines and even jail time.

My guess is that everyone who itemizes regularly plays the audit lottery. And many who don't itemize do so, too. Unlike a regular lottery, the chances of coming out ahead are significantly in favor of the player. The fact is that playing the audit lottery is purposely cheating on taxes. Of course, the more cheating that takes place under the current system, the more likely the FairTax can succeed.