Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Bush's Cash For Clunkers

Bush had a Cash For Clunkers program, too:
Here is the Cash for Clunkers program that was in place during the Bush Administration. The bonus depreciation provisions put in place after 9/11 provided a 50% immediate tax deduction for the purchase of Large SUV’s. So when my boss purchased a $100,000 Range Rover he wrote off $50,000 on his taxes. Assuming a 35% federal tax bracket – this resulted in an immediate tax refund of $17,500 on the purchase of the Range Rover (even though the down payment may have been $10,000). $17,500 cash for the purchase of a 12 mpg Range Rover.

OMG. That looks suspiciously like a tax break to the wealthiest Americans to encourage them to slurp more gas to profit the world’s wealthiest corporations--ExxonMobil, for instance.

I guess you'd call that "cash for wealthy energy sucking, polluting, global warming enducing Republicans." Now those are some real clunkers.

(Via Andrew Sullivan)