Does anyone remember what Reagan did to try to get the unemployment down from his HUGE 10.8% unemployment?
Answer: Reagan raised taxes 9 times on the Middle Class.
1982 - Reagan signed into law not one but two major tax increases.
(1) The Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act raised taxes by $37.5 billion per year -
--- This raised taxes by almost 1% of the GDP, making it the largest peacetime tax increase in American history. An increase of similar magnitude today would raise more than $100 billion per year.
(2) Highway Revenue Act of 1982 raised the gasoline tax by another $3.3 billion.
1983: Reagan’s Social Security Tax Increase
(3) Reagan signed legislation which INCREASED PAYROLL TAX for Social Security.
(4) Reagan increased Payroll taxes AGAIN with Medicare health insurance.
Both taxes are still here today.
(5) 1984: Reagan’s Deficit Reduction Act of 1984.
Reagan raised taxes by $18 billion per year or 0.4 percent of GDP.
--- A similar sized tax increase today would be about $44 billion.
(6) 1985: Reagan raised taxes with his Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985
(7) 1986: Reagan’s Tax Reform Act of 1986, contained a net tax increase in its first two years.
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1987 Reagan’s Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 raised taxes still more.
(9) By 1988 - Reagan’s INCREASE in payroll tax share was up to 11.8 percent, and burden for Middle Class was up, not down.