Tancredo Voices Support For Fair Tax

The "FairTax," or national consumption tax, is an idea that has been batted around the offices of conservative members of Congress for several years now. It was explained plainly and simply in a book two years ago by libertarian talk-show host Neal Boortz and Congressman John Linder (R-GA). It is the alternative to the flat tax which would tax income at a uniform rate across all income levels. The FairTax would tax consumption at a uniform rate, and it would do so implicitly by being factored in to the prices of all new goods and services (not second-hand or used goods).

Every new session of Congress brings the reintroduction of the FairTax Act by Rep. Linder and each time it gains support in the form of additional cosponsors. It has received some very vocal support recently as Congressman Tom Tancredo (R-CO) uttered the following phrase during the segment on taxes during last week's Republican presidential debate:

For all the reasons mentioned by some of my colleagues I absolutely support the Fair Tax, it has to be accompanied however with the repeal of the 16th Amendment or we'd end up with a consumption tax and an income tax.

You can't be more supportive than that. The thing to distinguish this option from everything else being ballyhooed around the halls of Congress is that second part of Tancredo's statement. The repeal of the 16th Amendment would essentially end the IRS's choke-hold on the American taxpayer and shut down the Marxist form of taxation. The income tax has become the Washington's easiest way to increase their influence on the economy through continuously tweaking the code and inventing new loopholes while closing others. It is because of this that there is a $500 billion annual cost of complying with the tax code. This equates to a per capita cost of $1,667.

Opponents to the FairTax, some of whom are conservatives, will decry the loss of jobs suffered by IRS employees. Well, I for one wouldn't shed a single tear for them. Did they go to school specifically to be employed at the IRS? I'm sure that 100% of those people would be able to find a job in the financial services marketplace within a month.

The honest truth is that we need to figure out ways to cut the ever-increasing influence of the federal government in our everyday lives. The best way to do so is to take their collective hand out of our pockets once and for all ...