Spending on empiric wars/black ops/national security and the US Federal debt service alone add up to at least $1.7 trillion a year in spending.
For just 2011, over $1.2 trillion will be spent on defense, black ops, previous military debt, etc. The overall deficit is $1.7+ trillion. $150 to 300 billion year in lost income tax revenue from the horrid Bush tax cuts {see below for the figures} is not going to come close to making serious dent in the deficit.
I completely agree with you that the wealthiest individuals should have not received extensions of the Bush tax cuts, but this is just a start. The US has to stop the empiric war spending and finally hold the financial systemic controllers to account.
Throughout the history of the last 65+ years, whatever the tax rates were for individuals and corporations have been, the most total revenue the Federal government has ever taken in is around 20% of the GDP. It fluctuates between 15% and 20% no matter what they do. Plus, the US GDP is now, as a percentage, composed to higher level of financial, banking transactions (not tangible good production, etc) than at any other time in its history.What is needed is a 1% Tobin tax (a Wall Street sales tax, if you will) on all financial transactional turnover (with a $1 million bottom floor exemption on the first million dollars).Combine that with at least a 50 to 60% reduction in war machine spending, and you have a balanced budget, the ability to start to pay down the national debt, and finally justice where the banksters are forced to pay their fair share of national upkeep. As of now they exist in an almost pure fascistic state, where they keep private 'profits' in the trillions, and yet get bailed out by having the trillions of real losses dumped onto the citizens.
This is a sample of the Bush income tax cuts
1998 - 828.6 in billions of constant dollars (1998 = 100)
1999 - 860.5
2000 - 950.9
2001 - 915.1 Bush tax cuts passed in June 2001
2002 - 777.7
2003 - 703.1
2004 - 698.1
2005 - 773.8
2006 - 844.0 5 years later tax revenue was still down from 2001
http://www.koch2congress.com/7.html Taking the highest year (2001) and subtracting 2006 (844.0 5 years later tax revenue was still down from 2001) you come up with only a $106 billion difference. Taking the lowest year (2004) from the 2001 totals you get $252 billion. These numbers are dwarfed by the spending on the war machine alone. Yes, taxing the rich via a fair income tax is important, but it doesn't come close to closing the huge deficits. Look at the percentage of GDP taken in tax when the top rate for the rich was 90% under Eisenhower. It didn't raise enough then, and certainly will not now. They will simply hide their income via loopholes, or move it off-shore. The only way to cut the deficits is to drastically cut war spending, close up many tax loopholes, institute a single-payer not-for-profit health care system, end the private Federal Reserve, and institute a Tobin tax of some sorts.
Good luck getting ANY of these done, no matter which of the two puppet parties are in power.