Prime Example of Why We Need Tax Reform

During a town hall meeting recenly, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) cited GE as an example of why we need serious reform to our tax code. He stunned the crowd with the following details:

GE's reported income for last year was $14,000,000,000. Through the use of loopholes in the tax code, deductions provided for by law, and preferential treatment from the government in the form of tax credits, GE paid no taxes on that income.

Everything GE did was apparently legal. GE's management performed their jobs by maximizing the company's profit and shareholder returns. They did nothing wrong.

Why isn't the Obama Administration attacking GE as a 'rich' tax evader? Why isn't His Highness referring to them in every speech he makes about his desire for wealth redistribution? It's simple - GE's upper management has made a very smart decision to suck up to Obama and his agenda. His policies have no bigger corporate cheerleader than GE. As a result, GE avoids criticism of its 'rich' status, no one is attacking their lack of paying taxes, and it continues to benefit from billions of dollars in government contracts. Smart business.

If GE had paid taxes of, say, 20% on their profits last year, that would have been almost $3,000,000,000 added to the Treasury.

BTW - GE's tax return, if it had been filed on actual paper, would have been 57,000 pages long!