Speaker Boehner said yesterday the Republican tax plan would “clear the underbrush" of the tax code. That’s interesting, because Republicans have repeatedly opposed eliminating some of the most egregious tax loopholes, including:
* Carried Interest Tax Loophole: Allows certain investment managers - including private equity managers - to pay a reduced 15 percent tax rate on income received as compensation, rather than ordinary income tax rates up to 35 percent that all other Americans pay.
* Big Oil Tax Subsidies : The Big Five oil producers continue to report record billion-dollar profits yet continue to benefit from tax subsidies such as the Section 199 Manufacturing Deduction, which was never intended to assist Big Oil producers when it was enacted in 2005.
* Tax Loopholes for Offshore Tax Havens: Each year, the United States loses billions in tax revenue from U.S. tax-dodgers using hidden offshore accounts as tax havens to evade their U.S. tax obligations.
