Subject: Blog post on taxes
From: Dan Schwerin <[email-masked]>
To: Cheryl Mills <[email-masked]>, Heather Samuelson <[email-masked]>, Jake Sullivan <[email-masked]>, Jennifer Palmieri <[email-masked]>, Brian Fallon <[email-masked]>, Kristina Schake <[email-masked]>, Christina Reynolds <[email-masked]>, John Podesta <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 28 Jul 2015 15:09:03 -0400

Cheryl asked me to think about a piece from HRC that could accompany the
release of her tax returns. One idea is to follow Jeb's example and use
this as an opportunity to walk through her personal and professional
history (
https://jeb2016.com/news/my_career_through_33_years_of_tax_returns?lang=en).
Another option, which Jake and I find more attractive, would be to use this
as a hook for driving a contrast message on tax policy.  I've taken a stab
below at what that might look like.  This could be a post on The Briefing
or Facebook or however we're planning to roll out the returns.  If folks
don't like this, I'd be happy to try the more personal narrative instead.

Over the past few months, I’ve listened to Americans’ concerns about an
economy that still seems stacked for those at the top.  Nowhere is this
imbalance more apparent – or more problematic – than in our tax code.  It’s
full of loopholes that allow the wealthiest Americans and most powerful
corporations to game the system and avoid paying their fair share.  It
shouldn’t be possible for a highly-paid Wall Street trader to ever pay a
lower tax rate than a teacher or a nurse, but too often that’s what
happens.  The current tax code also creates perverse incentives that
discourage long-term investments that would grow our economy and raise
incomes for hard-working Americans.

I’ve made reforming our tax code to promote strong, fair, long-term growth
a centerpiece of my campaign, and I will continue detailing specific new
ideas in the months ahead.

Today, I’m releasing my own family’s tax returns, on top of previous
releases going back all the way to 1977.  Since 2008, we have paid
$38,648,195 in federal taxes – with an effective tax rate of 35.7% in 2014
– and donated $11,867,350 to charitable organizations.  For those who
remember Mitt Romney paying just a 14.1% effective tax rate, our bill may
seem surprisingly high.  But the truth is, for people who have been blessed
with as much good fortune as Bill and I have been, it should probably be
even higher.

I believe tax reform should be guided by some simple principles.

First, hard-working middle class families and small businesses need and
deserve tax relief and simplification.

Second, those at the top have to pay their fair share.  That’s why I have
called for closing the carried interest loophole, which lets wealthy
financiers pay an artificially low rate, and implementing the Buffett Rule,
which makes sure millionaires don’t pay lower rates than their secretaries.

Third, the tax code shouldn’t reward companies for shipping jobs or profits
overseas, or encourage quick trades on Wall Street at the expense of
long-term investments that create jobs and raise incomes here at home.
I’ve proposed raising short-term capital gains tax rates for those in the
top bracket and then going to a six-year sliding scale that will encourage
longer-term investments.

We hear very different principles from the Republican candidates running
for President.  For example, Jeb Bush would eliminate capital gains taxes
for wealthy investors with no incentives for long-term holding.  Marco
Rubio’s plan would cut taxes for households making [around $3 million] a
year by [almost $240,000] – more than three times the earnings of a typical
family.  That’s a budget-busting give-away to the super-wealthy and the
sort of bad economics you’re likely to get from any of the Republican
candidates.

Families like mine that reap so many of the rewards from our economy have a
responsibility to pay our fair share.  And it’s not just the right thing to
do -- it’s also good for growth.  To create jobs and raise incomes, our
country needs resources to make big investments in infrastructure,
innovation, clean energy, and education.  That’s vital if we’re going to
make the economy work for everyone, not just those already at the top.

I believe that we all have to do our part to renew the basic bargain of
America: If you work hard and do your part, you should be able to get ahead
and stay ahead.  And when you get ahead, America gets ahead too.