Shredding Constitutions

Posted on 03/20/2009 at 9:28 am by Bob Cesca

Let’s be perfectly clear about this. That 90 percent tax thing will never be enforced because, yes, it’s unconstitutional. But as Lawrence O’Donnell pointed out on Countdown last night, it was a great ploy to get more than half of the House Republicans to inadvertantly vote for the largest marginal tax rate increase in many, many, many years. Whoops!

But the far-right has since been screaming about “the shredding of the Constitution.”

That’s hilarious.

Digby details how remarkable this is. You mean after eight years of Bush Republican policies, there’s still a Constitution?

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  • http://www.windonwater.net QueenTiye

    It may not be unconstitutional. I forgot who reported on it, but someone asked some lawyerly folks who stated that they had been getting calls on the question since before this went through… which suggests to me that lawmakers were inquiring about the construction of the law.QT

  • http://annette-justmylittlepieceoftheworld.blogspot.com/ Annette

    From Media Matters:Discussing the House vote to levy a 90-percent tax on executive bonuses, NBC, ABC, and Fox News all advanced the false Republican allegation that by passing the recovery bill, Democrats created the right for AIG to pay bonuses. In fact, the bill did not create the right for AIG — or any company — to pay bonuses; rather, it restricted the ability of companies receiving TARP money to award bonuses in the future.http://mediamatters.org/items/200903200003

  • http://nanotyrnns.blogspot.com/ Nanotyrannus

    I agree that it would not survive a court challenge. In fact, anyone supporting the bill would have to know that it’s passage and signing into law would result in many court challenges, lasting years.

  • http://www.thenewwearsoff.com Kyle

    Reporting from Washington — The American International Group Inc. employees who received big bonuses and now could face a 90% tax bill may feel they have been singled out for unfair punishment by angry lawmakers.

    But they are not likely to win a court challenge if the legislation becomes law, because courts have given legislatures broad leeway to raise and lower taxes without running afoul of the Constitution, legal experts said Thursday.

    Tax law is a very, very different beast than statutory law.

  • SillyRatfacedGit

    I do not believe that this law will be found unconstitutional either. This is my opinion so take it for what it’s worth.There is a very large number of precedents of Congress changing tax laws in this fashion throughout history. I don’t know of any successful challenges.Kyle must read the same stuff I do.DISCLAIMER: I am not a Lawyer nor do I play one on TV or the Intertubes. Anyone taking legal advice from a Silly Git on the Webs will get what they deserve.

  • SillyRatfacedGit

    I should have also noted that the language of the Constitution itself gives congress the right to levy taxes without any language limiting this right. The Constitution itself grants Congress very broad rights with respect to any aspect of the levying of taxes. If one interprets the constitution in a strict, fundamentalist fashion, then congress has a very free hand indeed with respect to federal taxation.For this reason, I don’t see any way to create a credible challenge. Again, this is my opinion.

  • http://www.thenewwearsoff.com Kyle

    I am also not a tax lawyer, but I work in the structured settlement industry (setting them up, not buying them!) and we work closely with several tax lawyers, all of whom have told me they think this would hold up relatively easily.Also, the House passed the law without even knowing the names of the ‘targeted’ individuals, so calling it a bill of attainder would be difficult.

  • SillyRatfacedGit

    From Digby’s excellent (as usual) piece:

    Many detainees locked up at Guantanamo were innocent men swept up by U.S. forces unable to distinguish enemies from noncombatants, a former Bush administration official said Thursday.

    I observe that we were burdened by the lawless Bush administration by an electorate that was unable to distinguish enemies of the state from competent leadership.

  • Jim

    A tax on $250K total household income. The best part- Married but filing singly- hand over anything above $125K. On everyone; on people who had nothing to do with the actions of company execs. And how is this fair? This is one fucked up situation.