Steven Schwarzman: Obama Administration's Tax Proposals Are Like 'When Hitler Invaded Poland'

[Pirate Smile]

Steven Schwarzman: Obama Administration's Tax Proposals Are Like 'When Hitler Invaded Poland'



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." (Hat tip to the 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.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/16/steven-schwarzman-obama-a_n_683178.html

[MrScorpio]

1. Godwin would be proud nt

[muntrv]

2. WAAAAHHHH! WAAAAAHHHHH! I CAN'T BUY AN ISLAND!

:nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity:

[DBoon]

3. No, he has no money left over

from having successfully bought the US government

[Dawson Leery]

4. Let us go back to the mid 1960's when

the top tax rate was 70% with few deductions for those making over $500,000($3,000,000 in 2010 dollars).

[tanyev]

5. I didn't feel too good yesterday. It was like the flu epidemic of 1918!!!

[Mz Pip]

8. I have a headache

It's like Chinese water torture!

[tanyev]

9. Srsly. What a bunch of drama queens.

[BeyondGeography]

6. A useless person whose business adds no value

Yeah, your rate is going up. If only to discourage the paper shuffling and self-dealing you call "investment."

[LatteLibertine]

7. Schwarzman

have a good cry because we will be voting out Wall Street lackeys in our government regardless of party.

Telegraph.co.uk also touched on this bit of whining.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/7949062/Blackstone-chairman-Steve-Schwarzman-US-President-Barack-Obama-is-like-Hitler.html

Below is what a corrupt government and corporate culture has done for the US.

http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html

Summary? 20% of our population holds 85% of our wealth and 61% of all income. That rigged system is going to be reformed.

[SoxFan]

10. Donated $25,000 to RNC last cycle

Plus contributions to Romney, McCain, and some GOP leadership PACS.

[JoePhilly]

11. While I would never wish rectal bleeding on anyone ...

Nor would I pray that God would cause anyone to grow a painful lump in their groin area ....

Nor would I hope that some anyone's skin would harden into a shell, which as it cracked via movement, caused great pain ...

Nor would I giggle if anyone's eye's burned at the sight of their own children ...

This guy does make me reconsider those positions.

[agentS]

12. Crap like this is why the bankers are hated so much

Well, Mr. Schwarzman, why don't you just go on ahead and tell us to EAT SHIT AND DIE?! Or better yet EAT MONSANTO CROPS AND DIE?!
Pres. Obama once said "I'm all that's standing between you (the bankers) and the pitchforks".

By all means, Mr. President, step out of the way so us torch-and-pitchfork wielders can deal appropriately with this scumbag.

[KakistocracyHater]

13. more hysteria-making from the fake wmd crowd, the bill would require

they pay the SAME RATE AS THE REST OF US!!!! Oh the OUTRAGE!

[DailyGrind51]

14. I have relatives who lived through that invasion, many more who didn't,

The Poles were out-gunned and out-spent, just like the Progressives who are attempting to defend average Americans from the billion-dollar blitz krieg of Wall Street. The Germans employed the same propaganda as Schwarzman to justify their attack, by claiming that Poland was the aggressor.