I am all for that. The secretary is likely part of that 47% that pay no federal income taxes.
I know you were just trying to be flipped in your rebuttal, but I think we need to have some perspective on the economics of our day.
We keep hearing from Republicans that 1% of the top wage earners pay 40% of federal income taxes while 47% of low income households pay no federal income taxes. Folks, hold onto your butts because you're about to be educated...
According to the latest IRS data:
Men remain the largest wage earners with a mean income of $75,875/annual and a median income of $57,514. The national mean income level is $69,244; median income is $52,724. (See
mean and median income to understand the difference.) The breakdown of mean income by race is as follows:
Whites = $78,017 (3.9 million wage earners)
Hispanics = $57,350 (1.09 million wage earners)
Blacks = $53,702 (780K wage earners)
The
number of households by race earning $250,000 or more is as follows:
Whites = 399,844
Hispanics = 457,894
Blacks = 415,552
The above figures look pretty good, right? Let's dig alittle deeper into the statistics and see what else we find...
The
2011 Federal Poverty Level (FPL) (excluding Alaska and Hawaii; they have their own FPL rate):
$22,350. Again using the latest IRS data:
The
number of male wage earners with income at or below the FPL: 7.3 million
The number of senior citizens (65 and older) living at or below the FPL: 2.2 million (See top of linked IRS website below for details)
The
number of single-family homes with at least 4 members in the household at or below the FPL: 582,000
The number of families at or below the FPL: 6.9 million (See top of linked IRS website for single-family homes above)
Why are there so many people below age 65 living in poverty today? Lack of skills that would allow wage earners to move up the economic ladder is a primary limiting factor. That problem persists today. Students living in poverty (low-income families) is the primary reason why most can't graduate high school let alone go on to college. Education beyond high school plays a huge role in uplifting students and families out of poverty. Per the latest
Dept. of Education statistics:
Number of minority students living in poverty (Blacks, Hispanics, Native American, Other):
FY2008: 40% (471,898)
FY2009: 41% (538,249)
Note: Refer to page 40, fig. 2.1 of linked DoE report for details
Now, let's look at some positive education numbers:
Percentage of Black high school grads (HSG):
FY2008 Target Grads: 85.5%
FY2008 Actual Grads: 86.9% (+1.4% over target)
FY2009 Target Grads: 85.8%
FY2010 Target Grads: 86%
Percentage of Hispanic high school grads:
FY2008 Target Grads: 70.3%
FY2008 Actual Grads: 75.5 (+5.2% over target)
FY2009 Target Grads: 70.6%
FY2010 Target Grads: 71%
Note: Refer to page 37, fig. 1.6 of linked DoE report. Actual figures for FY2009 and FY2010 grad rates were due out in July, 2011 but have yet to be reported.
Percentage of Black college graduates from historically Black colleges/universities (HBCUs):
FY2008 Target Grads: 39%
FY2008 Actual Grads: 35%
FY2009 Target Grads: 40%
FY2009 Actual Grads: 34%
FY2010 Target Grads: 40%
Percentage of Hispanice college graduates from traditional Hispanic colleges/universities:
FY2008 Target Grads: 37%
FY2008 Actual Grads: 42%
FY2009 Target Grads: 44%
FY2009 Actual Grads: 42%
FY2010 Target Grads: 45%
Note: Refer to page 46, fig. 3.1 of linked DoE report. Actual figures for FY2010 college grads due out in Dec, 2011.