Believe it or nuts! The largest corporation in America pays no federal taxes. GE is gaming the system so successfully that they're getting a free ride. Thank goodness we can afford to give them the services of the US Army, Navy and Air Force for free, while they sell weapons to our "friends." What's wrong with this picture?
Even Ronald Reagan was frustrated when he learned back in the 1980s that GE paid almost no taxes then. Closed corporate loopholes with 1986 tax law. Raised GE's tax rate to over 32% some years. Then they went to work in the congressional-military-industrial game and by the 90s their taxes were going down, down, down.
GE grew profits overseas, grew jobs overseas. What's wrong with this picture? GE pays no taxes in the U.S., but claims high U.S. taxes are making it uncompetitive globally, and keeps them from creating jobs here at "home." I think they've got it backwards. GE is an irresponsible corporate leech, profiting off of the gullibility of American taxpayers. U.S. tax laws coupled with competing cooperative foreign countries' low-corporate tax laws encourage GE to "move" profits overseas, and move jobs overseas.
Hmm. How can they do that? One old-fashioned example: First, sell U.S.-made GE parts at an in-house discount to overseas branches. Fair enough accounting, I suppose, but the U.S. branch loses money every year! No tax liability! But look at the plant in Ireland: they are able to get cheap parts from the U.S. and sell the finished products at a market price. Voila! Irish plants are very profitable, but Ireland doesn't insist on much in taxes. They don't provide nuclear aircraft carriers to defend the Free World, either.
Somehow, I feel I'm being screwed. It's not class envy on my part. Call it "shared sacrifice." It's time, again, to get GE and its fellow corporate welfare kings, back into the fold or responsible American corporate citizens. We need to put them back to work here.
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