It was supposed to be a tax cut for
manufacturers. Then it got out of control.
The wildly popular manufacturing break,
passed in 2004, is a case study in the unforeseen consequences of
changing the tax code — how companies take advantage of gaping
holes and force the government to play catch-up.
— NYT:
In a Complex Tax Bill, Let the Hunt for Loopholes Begin (Paywall)
As
members of Congress
we
have to confess
when
dealing with taxes
we
make a mess.
This,
sadly, applies
across
the aisle,
for
both parties fall
for
lobbyists' guile
and
at their urging
write
into law
clauses
we have no idea
what
they're for
only
to find
sooner,
not later,
we've
created another
revenue crater,
leaving
the government
so
short of cash
that
it invites
all
things to crash.
Bridges
and highways
crumble
while
we
go on TV
pretending to smile,
saying
with US
all
will be well
while
with THEM
it'll
be hell.
No
wonder voters
get
disaffected.
Not
that it matters
if
we're reelected.
The
country's secure,
safe
from defeat,
only
while each of us
keeps his
or her seat.