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More copies of this ISBNThis title in other editionseBook editionsPerfectly Legal: The Covert Campaign to Rig Our Tax System to Benefit the Super Rich -- and Cheat Everybody Elseby David Cay Johnston
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:One of the country's top investigative reporters reveals how the richest people within the top 1 percent of the country has rigged the tax code and other laws in its favor.
Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter David Cay Johnston has been breaking pieces of this story on the front page of the New York Times for nine years, work for which one business school professor calls him "the de facto chief tax enforcement officer of the United States." With Perfectly Legal, he puts the whole shocking narrative together in a way that will stir up media attention and make readers angry about the state of our country. And he has sound advice on what to do. Since the mid-1970s, there has been a dramatic shift in who benefits from the American economy and bears the burden of taxes. CEOs, big investors and business owners can delay paying their taxes for years and sometimes escape them almost entirely, while wage earners have theirs taken from each paycheck. Discreet lobbying by the political donor class has made tax policies and enforcement a disaster. Because of obligations to these donors Washington has been unable, or unwilling, to fix these problems. The news media have largely ignored official favors to those who are supposed to pay the corporate income tax, the estate tax, and the gift tax. Millions of families expecting tax cuts are losing some or all of them to a stealth tax that was originally enacted only to apply to the tax-avoiding rich, but that now stings single mothers making as little as $28,000. But the cumulative results are remarkable: the 400 richest Americans pay a smaller share of their income in taxes than someone making $100,000. The 400 richest pay less and less of their income in taxes while the middle class pays more and more. And while the incomes of the very rich skyrocketed over three decades, the average income for the bottom 90 percent fell. Johnston exposes exactly how the middle class is being squeezed to create a widening income gap that threatens the stability of the country. By relating the compelling tales of real people across all areas of society, he reveals the truth behind:
Review:"[Johnston's] journalistic legwork informs every page of this expose....[A] thoughtful overview for any citizens willing to educate themselves on the issue." Publishers Weekly Review:"[Y]ou can't put it down....Perfectly Legal is rich with details and examples, and it never bogs down, even though Johnston deals with very complex tax schemes." San Antonio Express-News Review:"David Cay Johnston believes 'the tax system in America is being rigged to benefit the super rich.' And David Cay Johnston's Perfectly Legal and the alternative minimum tax have made a believer out of me." The Oregonian (Portland, OR) Review:"At times, this book might seem overstuffed with facts and numbers, but they serve a noble purpose....[A] scrupulously reported, anecdotally rich wake-up call urging all of us to not only follow the money but also pay the piper." Boston Globe Review:"[C]overs more ground than most investigations....Johnston presents plans for reform that sound plausible. But he understands that his reform plans and plans offered by other commentators quite likely will stand no chance in Congress or the executive branch." Cleveland Plain Dealer Review:"Johnston takes us on a remarkable excursion....Perfectly Legal thus stands as one of the best, and certainly one of the most thorough, examinations of the perfidies of recent tax policy in the United States." San Diego Union-Tribune Review:"Want to know how business execs get nearly free personal trips on their corporate jets? Johnston is your man." Business Week Review:"Mr. Johnston exposes some fundamental problems with the tax code that Campaign 2004 seems to be overlooking." Amity Shlaes, Financial Times Review:"This book is vital, an infuriating call to action." Jim Hightower, author of Thieves in High Places Synopsis:With a new Prologue and updated with new material, this six-week New York Times bestseller reveals how everyday Americans are being robbed to subsidize those who make millions. Synopsis:Now updated with a new prologue! Since the mid-1970s, there has been a dramatic shift in America's socioeconomic system, one that has gone virtually unnoticed by the general public. Tax policies and their enforcement have become a disaster, and thanks to discreet lobbying by a segment of the top 1 percent, Washington is reluctant or unable to fix them. The corporate income tax, the estate tax, and the gift tax have been largely ignored by the media. But the cumulative results are remarkable: today someone who earns a yearly salary of $60,000 pays a larger percentage of his income in taxes than the four hundred richest Americans. Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter David Cay Johnston exposes exactly how the middle class is being squeezed to create a widening wealth gap that threatens the stability of the country. By relating the compelling tales of real people across all areas of society, he reveals the truth behind:
Johnston has been breaking pieces of this story on the front page of The New York Times for seven years. With Perfectly Legal, he puts the whole shocking narrative together in a way that will stir up media attention and make readers angry about the state of our country. About the AuthorDavid Cay Johnston won a Pulitzer Prize in 2001 and was a finalist three other times since 2000 for his investigative reporting in the New York Times, for which he has written since 1995. Prior to that he wrote for the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Los Angeles Times, the Detroit Free Press, and the San Jose Mercury News. Johnston is a frequent guest on NPR's Fresh Air. Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Prologue Chapter 1: Taxes - They're Not for Everyone Chapter 2: A Nickel an Hour More Chapter 3: The Rich Get Fabulously Richer Chapter 4: Big Payday Chapter 5: Plane Perks Chapter 6: When the Old Man Is Dead and Buried Chapter 7: The Stealth Tax Chapter 8: How Social Security Taxes Subsidize the Rich Chapter 9: Preying on the Working Poor Chapter 10: Handcuffing the Tax Police Chapter 11: Mr. Rossotti's Customers Chapter 12: For Want of a Keystroke Chapter 13: Mr. Kellogg's Favorite Loophole Chapter 14: Mass Market Tax Evasion Chapter 15: Getting Off the Hook Chapter 16: Profiting Off Taxes Chapter 17: Profits Trump Patriotism Chapter 18: Letters to Switerzland Chapter 19: Gimme Shelter Chapter 20: Only the Rich Deserve a Comfortable Retirement Chapter 21: Is Reform Possible? Conclusions Notes Index What Our Readers Are SayingBe the first to add a comment for a chance to win!Product Details
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