Opinion: Competing Visions For Deficit Reduction

Conservatives in Congress have as of late been staunch supporters of raising the Medicare age to 67 from 65 years old. They claim that this would reduce the deficit by $5.7 billion each year. While that is true the change doesn't come without a cost: $11.4 billion every year that falls onto seniors.

Rather than increase the cost of healthcare on seniors one idea suggests that raising raising corporate tax dollars could raise $114 billion. This according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

The way to do this would be to subject all income earned by foreign subsidiaries of U.S. corporations to U.S. tax laws by limiting or eliminating deferrals for overseas profits. Right now, large corporations like Microsoft will shift their profits to overseas locations — such as remote islands in the Caribbean or Switzerland — to avoid paying taxes on them.