Screw Unpatriotic Corporations

WizardOfAz · April 9th, 2003, 10:34 AM

TV Ads Target Companies Moving Offshore

Wed Apr 9, 5:51 AM ET

By MARY DALRYMPLE, AP Tax Writer

WASHINGTON - American companies that move their headquarters offshore to avoid paying taxes will be the target of a new television advertisement that questions their patriotism during a time when U.S. soldiers are fighting in Iraq.

The ad contrasts images of soldiers at war with a fictional corporate executive. "In the sands of Iraq, our soldiers risk their lives for our country," says the voiceover. "At the same time, big corporations are abandoning our country and setting up phony tax shelters in the sands of Bermuda."

A group of taxpayer and citizen organizations calling themselves The Bermuda Project are running the advertisements to pressure Congress to pass legislation to stop companies from moving to offshore tax havens.

In what's known as a "corporate inversion," a company sets up a shell headquarters in a tax haven such as Bermuda while keeping most operations and jobs in the United States, potentially saving millions of dollars in U.S. taxes on income from foreign sources.

The ads will run later this week in this area and in the districts of House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas. The group wants Republican leaders to bring the legislation before the House for debate.

"The message is about shared sacrifice," said columnist and author Arianna Huffington, one of the founders of The Bermuda Project. "They're really cheating America, and they're cheating every American taxpayer who plays by the rules.

Hastert spokesman John Feehery said Republican leaders plan to examine the corporate tax system to reduce companies' incentives to move overseas. "Our companies are unfairly discriminated against in U.S. taxes," he said.

RedStorm · April 9th, 2003, 12:11 PM

I would like to know more about this. However, I am not a fan of Arianna Huffington. Didn't she say that anyone who owned a SUV was a supporter of terrorism? She is wacko.

AZCB34 · April 9th, 2003, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by RedStorm
I would like to know more about this. However, I am not a fan of Arianna Huffington. Didn't she say that anyone who owned a SUV was a supporter of terrorism? She is wacko.

She was on Real Time w/ Bill Maher last night and I kind of liked her. She is a bit nuts but in a relatively intellectual way.

Unfortunately, these companies aren't unpatriotic even though that is what the ad claims them to be. They are doing what is best for them and their stockholders...even if it is a bit questionable. Calling them unpatriotic is dumb. What should be done is to cut out the political cronism and the coddling or corporations here and make them pay their way. How often do cities, counties and states waive all taxes just to get a assembly plant or something built. Too often and it hurts the local, state and federal governments from funds.

I despise the idea of selling things by way of using patriotism...which the ad is doing...by selling companies "unpatriotic" practices...which likely were in place LONG before now. These companies didn't suddenly relocate in the past 2 months.

However, something needs to be done.

WizardOfAz · April 9th, 2003, 12:20 PM

AZCB34....Good stuff. You know, you are right, this is nothing new. I think it just gets cast in a different light now with the ballooning budget deficet.

AZCB34 · April 9th, 2003, 12:26 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by WizardOfAz
AZCB34....Good stuff. You know, you are right, this is nothing new. I think it just gets cast in a different light now with the ballooning budget deficet.

If not for the crumbled economy, this wouldn't even be page 15 material. Once you get the feds and states STRUGGLING with budgets (through their own fault in alot of cases...notice how they pressure the people to save and plan for rainy days but....) they start rolling out the big guns to correct the damage and go after things that have been turned a blind eye to for too long. Couple that with everyone's attention being on war and this sense that even the slightest difference of opinion or practice is "unpatriotic" or 'anti-American" and we get this stuff going on.

Dback Jon · April 9th, 2003, 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by AZCB34
She was on Real Time w/ Bill Maher last night and I kind of liked her. She is a bit nuts but in a relatively intellectual way.

Unfortunately, these companies aren't unpatriotic even though that is what the ad claims them to be. They are doing what is best for them and their stockholders...even if it is a bit questionable. Calling them unpatriotic is dumb. What should be done is to cut out the political cronism and the coddling or corporations here and make them pay their way. How often do cities, counties and states waive all taxes just to get a assembly plant or something built. Too often and it hurts the local, state and federal governments from funds.

I despise the idea of selling things by way of using patriotism...which the ad is doing...by selling companies "unpatriotic" practices...which likely were in place LONG before now. These companies didn't suddenly relocate in the past 2 months.

However, something needs to be done.

Great post, AZCB34.
Targeting the corporations is not totally fair. Congress is who created/refused to close any loopholes that make offshore companies attractive.
In the company that I work for, we have a Bahamian subsidiary for tax purposes. The pros and cons of this were discussed back and forth. The conclusion that was reached that was since it was legal, and we could save many $ in taxes, we would be in violation of our fiducary duty to our stockholders in we did not do this. Other corporations are in the same boat. Pressure Congress, and corporations will not have that choice.

Ed B · April 11th, 2003, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by WizardOfAz
TV Ads Target Companies Moving Offshore

Wed Apr 9, 5:51 AM ET

By MARY DALRYMPLE, AP Tax Writer

WASHINGTON - American companies that move their headquarters offshore to avoid paying taxes will be the target of a new television advertisement that questions their patriotism during a time when U.S. soldiers are fighting in Iraq.

The ad contrasts images of soldiers at war with a fictional corporate executive. "In the sands of Iraq, our soldiers risk their lives for our country," says the voiceover. "At the same time, big corporations are abandoning our country and setting up phony tax shelters in the sands of Bermuda."

A group of taxpayer and citizen organizations calling themselves The Bermuda Project are running the advertisements to pressure Congress to pass legislation to stop companies from moving to offshore tax havens.

In what's known as a "corporate inversion," a company sets up a shell headquarters in a tax haven such as Bermuda while keeping most operations and jobs in the United States, potentially saving millions of dollars in U.S. taxes on income from foreign sources.

The ads will run later this week in this area and in the districts of House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas. The group wants Republican leaders to bring the legislation before the House for debate.

"The message is about shared sacrifice," said columnist and author Arianna Huffington, one of the founders of The Bermuda Project. "They're really cheating America, and they're cheating every American taxpayer who plays by the rules.

Hastert spokesman John Feehery said Republican leaders plan to examine the corporate tax system to reduce companies' incentives to move overseas. "Our companies are unfairly discriminated against in U.S. taxes," he said.

Sorry, this is a little hard to swallow given that the GOP (along with Clinton) were rabid supporters of NAFTA, which made this practice of moving corporate offices out of the US as easy as pie. NAFTA opened the floodgates, and now the republican leadership sees fit to criticize these corporations for it because it's wartime? Apparently it's only important to pay taxes when there's a war, because I didn't hear a peep out of DeLay on this issue for the last 10 years when everyone and their brother was relocating corporate assets to Mexico and places like that

And Ariana Huffington is a limousine liberal of the highest order.

WizardOfAz · April 11th, 2003, 11:18 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Ed B
And Ariana Huffington is a limousine liberal of the highest order.

So does this mean the points in the aticle are factually incorrect or that they are correct, but because she is quoted, just not to be given as much credence?

Dback Jon · April 11th, 2003, 12:13 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Ed B
Sorry, this is a little hard to swallow given that the GOP (along with Clinton) were rabid supporters of NAFTA, which made this practice of moving corporate offices out of the US as easy as pie. NAFTA opened the floodgates, and now the republican leadership sees fit to criticize these corporations for it because it's wartime? Apparently it's only important to pay taxes when there's a war, because I didn't hear a peep out of DeLay on this issue for the last 10 years when everyone and their brother was relocating corporate assets to Mexico and places like that

And Ariana Huffington is a limousine liberal of the highest order.

Ed,

This has nothing to do with NAFTA. NAFTA may have moved some manufacturing to Mexico, but to achieve any real savings, one has to move to a place where the labor is dirt cheap, like Indonesia (where $150 Nikes are made by $5/day laborers).
NAFTA has nothing to do with corporate headquarters moving, or foreign tax shelters.

It is also interesting that Arianna is painted as a liberal today. A decade ago, she was half of one of the most conservative couples in DC, married to US Rep Bill Huffington, who lost a multi-million dollar Senate race to Diane Feinstein. The Huffingtons were the darlings of the right-wing crowd.

Of course they are divorced now, and Bill Huffington came out of the closet!!

mattyboy · April 11th, 2003, 04:47 PM

what time and channel is bill maher's show on? i used to watch politically incorrect almost every night.

KingofCards · April 11th, 2003, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by mattyboy
what time and channel is bill maher's show on? i used to watch politically incorrect almost every night.

It is on HBO late evenings. I don't know exactly what days.

Screw Unpatriotic Corporations

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