New York Representative Charlie Rangelwould be on your short list if you were going to pick a politician in Washington with the guts to start a national debate about tax reform. And that's just what the Democratic chair- man of the influential House Ways & Means Committee has done. In late October, Rangel proposed a wholesale overhaul of the tax code that would eventually eliminate the alternative minimum tax (AMT) hitting many middle-class and upper-middle-class taxpayers. It would also cut corporate taxes while tossing out advantages enjoyed by companies in some industries. He would pay for the bill in part by raising taxes on so-called carried interest, a compensation method taxed at 15% that is employed by private - equity players and others. Rangel is under no illusion that his plan will become law anytime soon. He knows that a protracted battle lies ahead.
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