UA-9726592-1

Monday, August 16, 2010

Steven Schwarzman compares Obama tax proposals to Nazi invasion of Poland

Huffington Post | Ryan McCarthy First Posted: 08-16-10 11:52 AM | Updated: 08-16-10 02:00 PM
The very humble Steven Schwarzman

Steven Schwarzman, the billionaire founder of private equity giant, the Blackstone Group, has long bemoaned bank bashing. But, on the subject of taxes, he's apparently not afraid to cast aspersions on the Obama administration.

Speaking to board members at a nonprofit recently, Newsweek reports that Schwarzman compared the recent Obama administration push to boost taxes on private equity firms to a "war... like when Hitler invaded Poland in 1939." (Business Insider.)

If Schwarzman is okay with comparing the Obama administration to Hitler, he's not comfortable with anyone engaging in bank bashing. Earlier this year at Davos, Schwarzman argued that anti-Wall Street rhetoric would make banks "insecure" and actually decrease lending. In a subsequent Washington Post op-ed, Schwarzman warned that lending could decrease if banks feel "under siege."

The Hitler analogy was apparently fueled by Schartzman's disagreement with proposals to increase the rate at which private equity managers are taxed. A long-delayed bill would increase the tax rate on the 20-percent share of profits that private equity firms charge clients. Currently, these fees are taxed at the normal 15 percent income rate. The proposal would tax these fees as corporate income -- a 35 percent rate.

In short, the bill would require Wall Street's private equity titans to pay income taxes at the same rate as the rest of America.

Middle Class warrior remembers Schwarzman at the Davos conference. He was incredulous that most of the Europeans wanted to increase regulation of international banking. One of the Europeans at Davros indicated the the US banking crises destroyed 40 per cent of the world's wealth.

LLoyds of London was even critical of US banking system and suggested it conservative principles had been followed, the meltdown would not have occurred.


Subscribe to the Rightardia feed: feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/IGiu

Netcraft rank: 10672 
http://toolbar.netcraft.com/site_report?url=http://rightardia.blogspot.com

No comments: