Thank you! Take a look at the company's earnings report and you will see that they already pay a 49% income tax rate!

Assuming Obama is telling the truth (and that story is incredibly lacking in details), his plan makes even less sense. Increasing taxes on the industry and the same old dem rhetoric designed to rally the ignorant.

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All you need to know about the energy crisis:
ANWR Exploration Republicans: 91% Supported. Democrats: 86% Opposed.
Coal-to-liquid R's: 90% YES. D's: 78% NO.
Oil Shale Exploration R's: 90% YES. D's: 86% NO.
Outer Continental Shelf Exploration R's: 81% YES. D's: 83% NO.
Increased Refinery Capacity R's: 97% YES. D's: 96% NO

SUMMARY: 91% of House Republicans have historically voted to increase the production of America’s own oil and gas. 86% of House Democrats have historically voted against.

Kind of hard to judge. In general I'm against targeting an industry for either tax breaks or higher taxes.

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I wasn't born with enough middle fingers.

Please stop spamming posts with this idiotic comment. Most large corps pay zero taxes after all the handwritten write-offs and tax breaks by their paid-for congress-critters.

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Obama/Biden 2008

Not to mention the fact that corporations do not pay taxes anyway. All those taxes are embedded in the cost of the goods they sell, are then collected, and given to the government. The more Obama bleeds the corporations of taxes, means the higher the cost of the goods. Tack on his stupid "windfall profit tax" and they'll just ratchet the cost of their goods up even higher.

Then again...Obama and the democrats are banking on the notion that their followers don't know how economics work. Hell, none of 'em know what a profit margin is, anyway.

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"I should be calling collect from jail for the things I commit each night in my head" - D. Mustaine.

In my humble opinion, the government should choose a number for the price of gas- a fairly high number and make sure that the price does not go down. In other words the tax will keep the price high and flat even if the price of a barrel of oil goes down. The extra tax can be used to ameliorate the harm that some people will experience from high gas prices. (you know, give MasTequila some extra gas money!)

There are a couple of reasonable arguments for this: the oil companies will do the R.&D to develop the oil resources that are difficult and expensive to access if they know they can make a profit. It is the volatility and uncertainty that impedes progress on new energy sources. The oil companies won't go there if the they calculate that oil prices may drop.

Also, And here is the Libertarian argument which I favor- the government should not choose the technology, the energy "winners", by giving some a tax break here or a rebate there. Then,changing their minds and allowing the whole thing to expire next year with a new administration. This is buggering up the solar industry, as well. The climate for investment is too unstable. That is the biggest problem.

Another thing. The price of oil is not like widgets. It is largely artificial already , it is determined by the cost of extraction/ refinement and taxes. Use the tax system to stabilize the price at high level so that Exxon will find it worthwhile to go after the shale oil in Wyoming (I think that is where it is) and the solar companies know what to expect ....things will happen, then.

I think it is a mistake for Obama to "fume" at oil companies for making money. When they stomp on the rights of indigenous people in Africa and S.America it turns my stomach but the fact that they make money is because they are us.

Some of us do and unfortunately rallying the ignorant is what they all do. You think the gas tax holiday is a sensible idea?

Regardless of how much damage they may create to the financial well being of their customers in the process of gouging them while selling a necessity?

Regardless of whatever damage they may inflict on the environment?

Whatever happened to concepts such as ethics and morality?

'Course not...that's just how the republicans pander to the idiocracy of America.

Same thing about the relief checks that went out this year. Nothing more than a band-aid on an open wound.

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"I should be calling collect from jail for the things I commit each night in my head" - D. Mustaine.

Reliable link?