A tax cut for the middle class

It has come out in the press that President-elect Obama would like to offer a substantial tax cut to the middle class. While I am for cutting taxes, I am trying to figure out how you can cut someone's taxes who does not pay taxes. Would this not end up as nothing more than a handout?

You see, this tax cut is being offered to the middle class. The problem is that most people in the middle class do not pay anything in taxes. Yes, we have money pulled from our paycheck every time we get paid. However, when we file our tax returns, we generally get that back. Therefore, the net effect is that we pay little, if any, taxes on our income. Yes, it would benefit me. However, I would then be accepting a government bailout of sorts since it is money that I did not pay into the treasury in the first place. It is an ethical dilemma.

The bulk of the taxes that the government collects are from those who make more than $250,000. Yet, we want to tax them more. These are the people who should have their tax burden alleviated. By allowing them to have control over where their money is spent, instead of the government, they will stimulate investment in private industry, which can only be a good thing.

I would rather have individuals stimulating the economy than having the government do it. That is not their role. They are there to keep the government out of the way and allow people to prosper. They are not there to get in the way and take away the role of private industry.

Yet I see pundits in the media asking if a tax cut is the right thing at this time. That will take money away from the government, just when they need more. Why, we have an increasing national debt (thanks to Congress). We have all of these bailouts that need to be paid for (whose fault is that?). Some people just make too much money and should not get a tax cut.

Here is my question to them: If people are losing their homes (as you constantly report), if people are losing their jobs (as you constantly report), if the economy is in such poor shape, then how can you take money out of people's hands (that have money) so they cannot pay their bills?