From the New York Times:

…Last year my federal tax bill — the income tax I paid, as well as payroll taxes paid by me and on my behalf — was $6,938,744. That sounds like a lot of money. But what I paid was only 17.4 percent of my taxable income — and that’s actually a lower percentage than was paid by any of the other 20 people in our office. Their tax burdens ranged from 33 percent to 41 percent and averaged 36 percent.

If you make money with money, as some of my super-rich friends do, your percentage may be a bit lower than mine. But if you earn money from a job, your percentage will surely exceed mine — most likely by a lot…

First off, Warren, if you really want to kick in a bit extra, then why did you have your team of lawyers and accountants (I’m sure you’ve got them) work the system so that you only paid an effective tax rate of 17.4%?  It is no problem for you to pay more – just take fewer deductions.  Or, if you want, just cut a billion dollar check to Uncle Sam.

Of course you won’t do that – not for you to just step up to the plate.  That wouldn’t advance your true cause here…keeping Big Government going through a round of tax hikes which might, indeed, take a little more from your annual income, but which will mostly hit people of far less wealth than you.  Because, dear Warren, you know better than most the truth…for all the billions you have, your wealth is chump change compared to the hundreds of billions held in smaller amounts by the people who make 200k or more per year.

Liberal financial sharks, like Buffett, thrive in a system of fiat money, government-subsidized debt and Big Government graft.  If that system comes to an end – via bankruptcy – then the Buffett’s of the world might have to get a real job.  You know, produce actual wealth  in order to make money.  The thought is too horrifying to contemplate.  So, rather than see their milch cow go down, they write Op-Eds in the New York Times which will then be cited by liberals as justification for higher taxes:  “see, even someone as rich as Warren Buffett wants a tax hike!”.   Sorry, Warren – too bad, liberals:  we’re on to the scam.

I propose a way to test this willingness of Buffett and other bazillionaire liberals to pay taxes.  Rather than hiking income taxes, why don’t we tax wealth?  I propose a 5% tax on all wealth in excess of $5 million.  Total it up for us, Warren – how rich are you?  Forbes says you’re worth $45 billion.  This means we want $2.25 billion from you next year.  And the year after.  You’d better hope your investments hold up, huh?  I know you were hoping for a “soak the middle class” tax hike which also might have cost you a measly million or two more per year (easily made up, of course, by some bit of sharp financial practice elsewhere), but I want to really tax the rich…I want a couple billion dollars from you.  Every year.  You do that, and I’ll agree to a general income tax hike.

Cross Posted:  Noonan for Nevada