Let's talk about who the McCain call for summer relief from the Gas Tax

really benefits.

In my mind, I see only one outcome; an increase in profits for the major oil companies.

Does anyone truly believe that the economists crunching numbers for the Seven Sisters have not already figured out exactly how much of that much ballyhooed gas tax relief they can siphon off into corporate profit?

Here's what I mean.

We are now paying roughly 17 cents per gallon in taxes each time we fuel up our vehicles. That 17 cent cut will be in place for a bout a week or two until the steady ratcheting of the price per gallon commences. This will wipe out any tax relief McCain wants to put in place and negate the slight economic impact that this tax cut should bring. Worse than that, when the tax relief expires, the oil companies will just merrily tack that seventeen cents back onto the already escalating cost at the pump.

The bottom line is this; less money to fix our nations infrastructure, more profits for the oil companies and a populist media hit for Straight shooting John McCain.

Cynical?

You bet I am.

heard his cockamamy proposal. And I don't for a second think he's not doing it deliberately.

He sold his soul to Bush to get this nomination. Now he's in bed with the oil companies just as much as Bush and Cheney.

And he'll be wrong...

I wouldn't say you're cynical, though...

More like in touch with reality...

as McCain would know that band-aids don't work.

Usual Repub plan: wipe out the tax that's used to fix our transportation infrastructure, point to the bad infrastructure with the requisite tsk-tsk'ing, then give Haliburton or equivalent no-bid gov't contracts to handle everything. And where do people think THAT money will come from? Local, state and/or federal taxes, that's where. And we'll be paying a hell of a lot more than 18 cents a gallon for it, too.

their PR talking points about how much tax they pay.

Collecting taxes is not paying taxes.

...with our business in the UK. We're responsible for collecting the VAT (17.5%) from our customers and turning it over to the gov't every quarter. Kinda sucky, but you just have to remember it's not income, it's not yours, so it goes into a separate account and when time comes off with it to where it belongs. So I have zero sympathy for the oil companies' argument. If that's the deal with the 18 cents/gallon then they aren't paying tax, they're receivers of tax for the gov't.

But that headache will go away if the Repubs privatize this country's infrastructure, as they're attempting to do. McCain is transparent as glass on this. We'll be screwed two ways if he "does away with" the gas tax, by the oil companies and by the inevitable increase the gov't will introduce elsewhere to pay private firms to fix our roads.

It is the worst tax since it effects those who are at the lower end of the income strata much more percentage wise than those who populate the high income brackets.

...but we run a business in the UK. (Hubby's a Brit.) Sales taxes are bad but not as bad as VAT which is similar to Repub-proposed Flat Tax schemes. It's a regressive tax and everyone has to pay the same amount on products/services regardless of where they live or income. It also is applied to every part of the supply chain, not just to the end consumer.

The benefit of VAT for businesses is that they can offset what they "owe" the gov't by applying the VAT from their business purchases against the VAT collected from sales.

Say for example we collected 3000 pounds in VAT one quarter. We then add up the VAT on purchases we made during that time and deduct the total from the sales VAT. So unless the business hasn't bought anything, we end up paying less than 3000. Consumers do not have that ability; everything they pay in VAT is gone, just like sales tax.

I wonder if the oil companies can do that with the tax they collect on gasoline?

On a 12 gallon fill up, that's a whopping $2.16 a tank back in your pocket. You fill up, what, twice three times a month? So you get an extra $6.50 in your pocket. What goes begging for that $6.50? Anyone remember the bridge collapsing in Minnesota last year? You think bridges, roads, and other infrastructure has magically all fixed itself since then? And if McCain wants to fully fund these projects, what programs is McCain going to cut? Let me guess: Veterans benefits!