Reason.com - Free Minds and Free Markets
Reason logo Reason logo
  • Latest
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Subscribe
    • Crossword
  • Video
    • Reason TV
    • The Reason Roundtable
    • Just Asking Questions
    • Free Media
    • The Reason Interview
  • Podcasts
    • All Shows
    • The Reason Roundtable
    • The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie
    • The Soho Forum Debates
    • Just Asking Questions
  • Volokh
  • Newsletters
  • Donate
    • Donate Online
    • Donate Crypto
    • Ways To Give To Reason Foundation
    • Torchbearer Society
    • Planned Giving
  • Subscribe
    • Reason Plus Subscription
    • Gift Subscriptions
    • Print Subscription
    • Subscriber Support

Login Form

Create new account
Forgot password

Politics

Nick Gillespie Talks Payroll Tax Cut on Judge Napolitano's Freedom Watch

Nick Gillespie | 12.23.2011 10:30 AM

Share on FacebookShare on XShare on RedditShare by emailPrint friendly versionCopy page URL Add Reason to Google
Media Contact & Reprint Requests

I was on Freedom Watch with Judge Andrew Napolitano last night, talking about the payroll tax cut brouhaha and making the case for getting rid of "payroll taxes" altogether. Drawing on a recent post, I argue that we should give up the fiction of dedicated taxes that fund Social Security and Medicare and call it all what it plainly is: income tax.

About 5 minutes.

Start your day with Reason. Get a daily brief of the most important stories and trends every weekday morning when you subscribe to Reason Roundup.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

NEXT: Detroit On a Fast Track to Greece

Nick Gillespie is an editor at large at Reason and host of The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie.

PoliticsPolicyEconomicsGovernment SpendingTaxes
Share on FacebookShare on XShare on RedditShare by emailPrint friendly versionCopy page URL Add Reason to Google
Media Contact & Reprint Requests

Hide Comments (13)

Editor's Note: As of February 29, 2024, commenting privileges on reason.com posts are limited to Reason Plus subscribers. Past commenters are grandfathered in for a temporary period. Subscribe here to preserve your ability to comment. Your Reason Plus subscription also gives you an ad-free version of reason.com, along with full access to the digital edition and archives of Reason magazine. We request that comments be civil and on-topic. We do not moderate or assume any responsibility for comments, which are owned by the readers who post them. Comments do not represent the views of reason.com or Reason Foundation. We reserve the right to delete any comment and ban commenters for any reason at any time. Comments may only be edited within 5 minutes of posting. Report abuses.

  1. wareagle   14 years ago

    Bread & circuses. Congress tries to get folks whipped up over $17 a week while hoping we ignore the 15T in debt. It's bullshit, a smokescreen, and one more example of why DC's motto is 'activity disguised as action'.

    Bastards. They hope you won't notice the terminology of a payroll tax "holiday". Holidays end at some point, but political gamesmanship is everlasting.

    1. I   14 years ago

      I did not know that. Thanks.

    2. Alice Bowie   14 years ago

      We're talking the American Public here.

      You know, people that The CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE:

      - is on THEIR SIDE...and
      the rest of us are WRONG

      - is offended by two men in
      San Francisco that got married

      - loves it when we kill Ducks,
      Fish, A-rabs, and Negros

      - hates it when we kill unwanted
      babies

      So, confusing them on the tax code should be a walk in the park.

      1. Crackpot Apocalypse   14 years ago

        It begins.

  2. FD Roosevelt   14 years ago

    "We put those payroll contributions there so as to give the contributors a legal, moral, and political right to collect their pensions and their unemployment benefits. With those taxes in there, no damn politician can ever scrap my social security program"

    1. Alice Bowie   14 years ago

      I like FDR. THings have been great since the New Deal and Things have been rather SHITTY since REAGAN.

      1. wareagle   14 years ago

        too bad that's not sarcasm as FDR's greatness only serves to prove Margaret Thatcher's truism about other people's money. SS was introduced when life expectancy was 63. The system is broke, even if you and the rest of the left do not want to believe it.

      2. Old Mexican   14 years ago

        Re: Alice Bowie,

        I like FDR.

        Everybody likes him now that he's dead. If he were a zombie, I don't think even you would like him as much.

      3. 70,000 Japanese   14 years ago

        We no rike.

        1. BigT   14 years ago

          It's fun while you're drinking. Sobering up and acting mature is not so fun.

  3. twistedmerkin   14 years ago

    Gillespie was talking about ME!

    Heh, I'm a dolt enough...

  4. Old Mexican   14 years ago

    Hey, Nick, nice rapport you had there with Tracy!

    Hmmm... Must be the jacket.

    (She's a married woman, FYI.)

  5. Kent   14 years ago

    Okay, you drive a hard bargain, $10 for the jacket.

    Does anyone here really think you're going to get out of a total meltdown of the economy before things get "fixed".

    Oh...Ron Paul 2012. Yah yah.

Please log in to post comments

Mute this user?

  • Mute User
  • Cancel

Ban this user?

  • Ban User
  • Cancel

Un-ban this user?

  • Un-ban User
  • Cancel

Nuke this user?

  • Nuke User
  • Cancel

Un-nuke this user?

  • Un-nuke User
  • Cancel

Flag this comment?

  • Flag Comment
  • Cancel

Un-flag this comment?

  • Un-flag Comment
  • Cancel

Latest

'Affordability' Politics Is a Major Opening for the Free Market Message in the New Year

Christian Britschgi | 12.31.2025 3:35 PM

If You Give a Bear a Badge, Will It Respect Your Rights?

Jacob Sullum | 12.31.2025 3:10 PM

The Big Lesson of the 2020s? Don't Ignore the Economists.

Eric Boehm | 12.31.2025 1:00 PM

Study: Short-Form Video Isn't Rotting Your Brain

Elizabeth Nolan Brown | 12.31.2025 12:24 PM

DHS Says REAL ID, Which DHS Certifies, Is Too Unreliable To Confirm U.S. Citizenship

C.J. Ciaramella | 12.31.2025 12:05 PM

Recommended

  • About
  • Browse Topics
  • Events
  • Staff
  • Jobs
  • Donate
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • Media
  • Shop
  • Amazon
Reason Facebook@reason on XReason InstagramReason TikTokReason YoutubeApple PodcastsReason on FlipboardReason RSS Add Reason to Google

© 2025 Reason Foundation | Accessibility | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

r

I WANT FREE MINDS AND FREE MARKETS!

Help Reason push back with more of the fact-based reporting we do best. Your support means more reporters, more investigations, and more coverage.

Make a donation today! No thanks
r

I WANT TO FUND FREE MINDS AND FREE MARKETS

Every dollar I give helps to fund more journalists, more videos, and more amazing stories that celebrate liberty.

Yes! I want to put my money where your mouth is! Not interested
r

SUPPORT HONEST JOURNALISM

So much of the media tries telling you what to think. Support journalism that helps you to think for yourself.

I’ll donate to Reason right now! No thanks
r

PUSH BACK

Push back against misleading media lies and bad ideas. Support Reason’s journalism today.

My donation today will help Reason push back! Not today
r

HELP KEEP MEDIA FREE & FEARLESS

Back journalism committed to transparency, independence, and intellectual honesty.

Yes, I’ll donate to Reason today! No thanks
r

STAND FOR FREE MINDS

Support journalism that challenges central planning, big government overreach, and creeping socialism.

Yes, I’ll support Reason today! No thanks
r

PUSH BACK AGAINST SOCIALIST IDEAS

Support journalism that exposes bad economics, failed policies, and threats to open markets.

Yes, I’ll donate to Reason today! No thanks
r

FIGHT BAD IDEAS WITH FACTS

Back independent media that examines the real-world consequences of socialist policies.

Yes, I’ll donate to Reason today! No thanks
r

BAD ECONOMIC IDEAS ARE EVERYWHERE. LET’S FIGHT BACK.

Support journalism that challenges government overreach with rational analysis and clear reasoning.

Yes, I’ll donate to Reason today! No thanks
r

JOIN THE FIGHT FOR FREEDOM

Support journalism that challenges centralized power and defends individual liberty.

Yes, I’ll donate to Reason today! No thanks
r

BACK JOURNALISM THAT PUSHES BACK AGAINST SOCIALISM

Your support helps expose the real-world costs of socialist policy proposals—and highlight better alternatives.

Yes, I’ll donate to Reason today! No thanks
r

FIGHT BACK AGAINST BAD ECONOMICS.

Donate today to fuel reporting that exposes the real costs of heavy-handed government.

Yes, I’ll donate to Reason today! No thanks