The Inheritance/Death Tax

Senator Barack Obama	Senator John McCain
Summary • Not all tax increases are the same • Estate tax increase affects only the wealthiest one-third of 1% in 2009	Summary • The inheritance tax penalizes those who wish to leave the fruits of their labor to their children
We have to stop pretending that all cuts are equivalent or that all tax increases are the same. Ending corporate subsidies is one thing; reducing health-care benefits to poor children is something else. At a time when ordinary families are feeling hit from all sides, the impulse to keep their taxes as low as possible is honorable. What is less honorable is the willingness of the rich to ride this anti-tax sentiment for their own purposes. Nowhere has this confusion been more evident than in the debate surrounding the proposed repeal of the estate tax. As currently structured, a husband and wife can pass on $4 million without paying any estate tax. In 2009, this figure goes up to $7 million. The tax thus affects only the wealthiest one-third of 1% in 2009. Repealing the estate tax would cost $1 trillion, and it would be hard to find a tax cut that was less responsive to the needs of ordinary Americans or the long-term interests of the country.	I will: Repeal the indefensible tax penalty that punishes couples who want to get married ... Slash the inheritance tax that penalizes those who wish to leave the fruits of their labor to their children ... End the earnings test penalty for seniors that taxes their income twice and denies them the self-respect that comes from working. Dramatically increase the number of Americans who qualify for the lowest tax rate of fifteen percent by raising the eligible income to $70,000 per couple.
October 1, 2006 The Audacity of Hope, by Barack Obama Pages 191-192 Link to Source	September 27, 1999 Nashua, NH Candidacy Declaration Speech Link to Source