Taxes and Spending

In Social Security and Medicare Projections: 2008, the following caught my attention.

Can Higher Taxes Solve the Problem? The CBO also found that if federal income tax rates are adjusted to allow the government to continue its current level of activity and balance the budget:

• The lowest marginal tax bracket of 10 percent would have to rise to 26 percent.
• The 25 percent marginal tax bracket would increase to 66 percent.
• The current highest marginal tax bracket (35 percent) would have to rise to 92 percent!

Additionally, the top corporate income tax rate of 35 percent would have to increase to 92 percent.

Wow.

Bush: A Better Catholic Than Some Catholics?

Lisa Fabrizio in The Pope in America:

It is noteworthy that the President granted a rare interview to EWTN, the Catholic TV network. When asked by interviewer Raymond Arroyo what he saw when he looked into the eyes of the Pope, he quickly answered, “God.” In some ways President Bush, a Methodist, is a better Catholic than many actual Catholics in Washington. After all, in addition to his commitment to the poor in Africa and elsewhere, he is in agreement with the Church on its five ‘non-negotiable’ issues: abortion, embryonic stem cell research, human cloning, euthanasia and homosexual “marriage.” Compare his record on these issues with ‘cradle’ Catholic congressmen like Pat Leahy, Ted Kennedy, John Kerry or Nancy Pelosi.Then consider the following letter to Cardinal McCarrick, former Archbishop of Washington, DC, entitled “Worthiness to Receive Holy Communion,” written by then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in 2004:

Not all moral issues have the same moral weight as abortion and euthanasia. For example, if a Catholic were to be at odds with the Holy Father on the application of capital punishment or on the decision to wage war, he would not for that reason be considered unworthy to present himself to receive Holy Communion. While the Church exhorts civil authorities to seek peace, not war, and to exercise discretion and mercy in imposing punishment on criminals, it may still be permissible to take up arms to repel an aggressor or to have recourse to capital punishment. There may be a legitimate diversity of opinion even among Catholics about waging war and applying the death penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and euthanasia.

Update (related, June 12, 2008): St. John’s Fort

Hillary v Obama, Round XXXVIII

I didn't watch the debate, but I'll take Ed's word for it:

The last Democratic debate has finally concluded, and perhaps the last chances of ending the primaries early. Thanks to a surprisingly tenacious set of questions for Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton from ABC moderaters Charles Gibson and George Stephanopolous, Barack Obama got exposed over and over again as an empty suit, while Hillary cleaned his clock. However, the big winner didn’t even take the stage tonight.

And later,

The winner of this debate? John McCain. Both Democrats came out of this diminished, but Obama got destroyed in this exchange. If superdelegates had begun to reconsider their support of Obama after Crackerquiddick, they’re speed-dialing Hillary after watching Gibson dismember Obama on national TV tonight.

Beware of Imposters

(Found via email.)