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TechWonk Blog
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This week鈥檚 House and Senate vote on a short-term deal to re-open the government and extend the federal debt ceiling was the symbolic equivalent of a stroke victim taking his first few tentative yet positive steps in rehab.聽 It鈥檚 not a perfect metaphor to describe the legislative paralysis that has gripped Washington, but it works when we think about what Congress needs to do going forward.聽 With congressional [...]
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Prior to participating in a discussion with employees at Intel Corporation in Santa Clara, Calif., House Ways & Means Chairman Dave Camp and Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus were given a brief tour of the Intel Museum.聽 Among the many innovations created by this iconic company was the 386 microprocessor, a 32-bit chip that made it possible for personal computers to run more than one software application [...]
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When it comes to identifying policymakers who will champion bipartisan, constructive approaches to fix our outdated, broken tax system and help U.S. companies to innovate, compete and create jobs, don鈥檛 count Senator Carl Levin among them. For several years, Senator Levin has used his position as Chair of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations to conduct a campaign to embarrass American companies [...]
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Under a beautiful blue sky in the Rose Garden this morning, President Obama laid out the three key questions that drove the priorities in his just-released Fiscal Year (FY) 2014 budget: 鈥淗ow do we make America a magnet for new jobs?聽 How do we give our workers the skills they need to do those jobs?聽 And how do we make sure that hard work leads to a decent living?鈥� Some of the key initiatives put forward [...]
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In a report that would have made Casablanca鈥檚 Captain Renault blush, this morning鈥檚 Marketplace Morning Report discovered the 鈥渟hocking鈥� news that U.S.-headquartered multinational companies keep their foreign earnings in foreign markets, and by doing so, they are able to defer any U.S. taxes on those earnings until it is invested in the U.S.聽 This isn鈥檛 new -- tax deferral been a feature of U.S. tax [...]
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It鈥檚 been interesting to follow the back and forth today on corporate tax reform between the Business Roundtable (BRT) and the White House.聽 It鈥檚 important to understand what was -- and wasn鈥檛 -- said. First, the BRT鈥檚 President, Governor John Engler, today put forward his organization鈥檚 2013 policy priorities -- a plan titled, 鈥淎ct for America鈥檚 Future.鈥澛� In response to a question about what he has [...]
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Today鈥檚 Wall Street Journal looks at a reality facing major U.S.-headquartered multinationals and our economy -- namely, the U.S. tax system is a barrier to new jobs and investments here at home.聽 Given the significant attention Congress will give to tax reform, it鈥檚 important to give context to the Journal article. The article focused on the fact that many U.S.-based global companies keep a significant [...]
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Sparky Anderson, who managed World Series-winning teams in Cincinnati and Detroit, once remarked, 鈥淲e鈥檙e getting close to opening day.聽 I don鈥檛 know if that鈥檚 a good or bad thing.鈥澛� January 3rd, 2013 marked American policymaking鈥檚 opening day:聽 the start of the 113th Congress.聽聽 We in the tech industry see the start of a new season of policymaking as a good thing because ours is an industry rooted [...]
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In what was certainly a tortured process, the Congress and the White House have completed work on legislation to avoid the so-called 鈥渇iscal cliff鈥� and what economists predicted could have been a relapse into a national, if not global, recession.聽 Importantly, this bill goes beyond recession avoidance and takes an important step toward stronger economic growth and job creation by renewing three key [...]
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President Obama and Governor Romney each have put forward plans to reform the corporate tax structure. 聽Many of their top advisors, key members of Congress, and a majority of the Simpson-Bowles Bipartisan Deficit Reduction Commission, among others, have recommended a shift to a lower corporate rate and a competitive, market-based international tax system.聽 But getting from policy ideas to actual law [...]