TOW #23: Visual

The U.S.'s corporate tax has long been a point of contention in the United States. Many liberals believe that a high corporate tax places responsibility on the richest of Americans (well, not "people" but "corporations", unless you believe corporations are people). Conversely, conservatives believe that raising the corporate tax will force away business to unregulated overseas markets. This view is what Chip Bok, a cartoonist for magazines such as The Times of London and New York Times, depicts in his April 7th cartoon showing businessmen setting sail from an enraged Barack Obama and the "world's highest business tax". While many conservatives may fear this mass exodus of business, in reality many corporations don't even pay the corporate tax, making evident the need for an even stronger corporate tax.

America's largest corporations largely do not pay taxes despite their grossly inflated revenues. Due to innumerous tax loopholes and off shore accounts, corporations pay close to none of the U.S's 35% corporate tax. According to Forbes, Apple only pays 11% of its income in taxes, and General electric paid only 9% of its 2 Billion dollars in revenue. To put this in perspective, 2 of the world’s highest grossing corporations are paying less than the 15% income tax on persons making only $10,000 dollars a year. This disparity in the taxes paid by corporations versus people is startling, and weakens the argument that the United States is forcing their own businesses out. Due to this, it is easy to see that the corporate tax rather than being relaxed, should be strengthened in order to hold big businesses accountable for their revenues. Corporations in no way will be hurt from these taxes, and it will be the first step in reducing the gaping void between the rich and the poor.