By What Definition?

We all heard it… well, at least some of us heard it.  In the last Presidential debate, Sen. Obama said that, contrary to what Sen. McCain said about his financial plan, his plan would not effect over 90% of small businesses, because those businesses don’t make over the $250,000 threshold that would see a tax cut instead of a tax increase.

Ok, but the problem here is that we have to figure out what Sen. Obama means by small business.  Because the Small Business Administration Size Table states that he’s flat out wrong.

What is a Small Business?

Quickly looking at the table, you see that many of the Crop Producing small businesses are considered small while they’re under $750,000 (with Cattle Feedlots at $2.5 million and Chicken Egg Production at $12.5 million).  Fishing, Hunting and Trapping?  $4 million.  Support for Agriculture and Forestry?  $7.0 million.  Construction of Buildings? $33.5 million.  Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction?  $33.5 million.  Specialty Trade Contractors?  $14 million.

Conclusion: The statement that he made is ludicrous.  There is no industry on this table with a high number of $250,000—they are all above.  He’s either lying or he has another definition for small business.  One that we need to hear.

What is a Tax Cut?

This isn’t the only place where we have a stretch in terms of what words imply and what they really mean.  In terms of the tax cut that Sen. Obama is touting—the one that is for 95% of the people who earn a wage in the United States.  It’s an illusion.

Like what I said earlier about the stimulus program being a gateway to socialism, Sen. Obama’s tax plan is actually about taking government money that they took from someone else and giving it to you.  This isn’t a cut—a cut would imply that you are already paying taxes and they’re reducing the burden—it’s a redistribution.

It’s equivalent of your neighbor coming to your house and taking part of your paycheck because “that’s only fair.”

It’s not a tax cut by a legitimate definition of the word.  But then again, most politicians don’t tell you what they are really proposing, and we know that most of them even have trouble telling us the definition of simple words like “is”.