Because my costs for filing and compliance go down?

Hardly. I file my own taxes, and I don’t have compliance issues. If you think I’m going to be in favor of paying twice the amount of taxes I do now, you’re nuts. I don’t know of anyone else in my income bracket that would like that either.

Hasn’t our argument against eliminating the Bush tax cuts been that having to pay more taxes in this economy would make it worse? Suddenly this is a good thing?

I do like Perry’s focus on energy, but Cain is for that too. What kind of mandate would Mitt have for 59 points? Not a very clear one.

9-9-9 reminds of
peace thru strength (Cain also echoes) – Won the Cold War
cut taxes – 25 year boom
cut spending (Dems betrayed Reagan)

All at once. The 999 plan may seem simplistic but there are quite a few change that people aren’t sure about and have a hard time getting the concept.

I’ve had hours of trying to explain this 999 plan to others who are marginally political astute. They still miss parts of the plan that I explain like the payroll taxes for SS and Medicare going away, or the effective income tax rates after deductions. I myself can piece together all the nuances of the tax code that would affect different groups. However, most only know what they are familiar with.

The danger from starting with a simple slogan for a plan that has a lot of changes, is that most people will start to assume things that aren’t in the plan, than what actually is in it. NightTwister is a prime example of this. More and more people will start asking as they come across the plan through mostly those who are against it, but that means they will come from a negative side first.

Perry’s plan is detailed, however I can sum it up in rather 2 short points. Expand all energy production in the USA, and fix the EPA and regulations that is choking business. Would anyone really ask more questions after that? To nearly everyone, it makes sense and is strait forward. For most who have a clue, they figure the President can do everything Perry presents in his plan. Perry also will be putting more out there according to his campaign.

Romney’s 59 point plan comes from someone who is a technocrat. You are right you can’t really sum up his plan in a few short sentences. That why no one is talking about it. Reagan was successful in a large way because he kept to a simple 3 point campaign. Get government out of the way, defeat the Soviet Union, and get the country moving economically again.

Trying to go simple on a complicated system will only shoot yourself in the foot in the end. It’s not that I don’t like 999, I do, but I see it getting in the way of Cain’s success. Time will tell though.

You mean that what America needs is a simplified “tax revision” to do what exactly? Cain states 999 will be revenue neutral, taking him at his word, the assumption is he ‘makes a bigger pie’… that’s wrong. If its revenue neutral… it means he’s just shuffling the shell game…where the bottom line will flux, and the top line will plateau… he suggests 999 won’t grow our revenues, but they’ll create a solid business environment that will magically broaden the tax base… that is based on some pretty dang big assumptions, and does nothing to create Jobs or Reduce Spending… I believe the 999 plan will be regressive… not jut neutral… and its likely to create havoc on prices and commodities… I fail to see this “you’re already paying hidden taxes” argument on consumption. How does passing 999 prevent a VAT?… more than likely it creates the path to VATs all over again…

I don’t need a marketing plan or a fella that assumes that citizens are hungry customers and are looking to consume an array of government products and services…, and I don’t need 59 points of zen… I need a candidate that knows how to open markets, end life threatening regulations on small and medium business, and drive business incentives for hiring, and stabilize the monetary policy so we stop moving the goal posts and get the citizens to pay for it…

Simplicity is genius, but genius isn’t simplicity… and we won’t win hearts and minds selling dreams of “equality through tax code”… we are not an equal nation of opportunities or outcomes…. we are meant to be a nation with a rule of law that protects the pursuit of happiness, with both life and liberty…. not at the expense of egalitarianism, but by the investment of a people that will live free or die.

999 is a populist plan that moves the goal posts closer to a FairTax… but I sincerely doubt a FairTax is the right way to go… what I do know is that the complexity of our code should be reduced dramatically. I’m not convinced that consumption will balance individual or corporate revenues… We can’t afford to take in less revenue right now… because we have yet to deal with our deficit spending.

Tax reform is secondary to Repealing Obamacare, Stabilizing our money aggregates, Reduce regulation, and Balancing our Budget by requirement through a new amendment. And yes repealing Obamacare will be easier than a 60 vote senate… and its quite likely that we win back the majority to do the job.

Bullocks on the well laid plans of mice and men… Abundance in our providence will be had by no less than the sacrifice and hard work of every individual… this is a work that mere mortal politicians can’t do… as it would require getting their ego’s out of the way.

and found the transcript for the Ryan interview here.

The portion you quote begins on page 11.

Excellent points all, but especially about the simplicity. Call it a gimmick or whatever you want, but folks are asking each other what do you think about 999? People who are only casually engaged in politics are talking. Not a single person has asked me about any other candidate’s plan.

In addition to 999, Cain has been vocal about getting the EPA and over-regulation off the backs of businesses.

is simple

energy = jobs

now you can explain it to your wife

Its hard to argue from a fiscally conservative view that if 9-9-9 was magically cemented into the US constitution never to be touched again that it wouldn’t be amazing for America competitiveness in the world and economic growth.

Because magically amending the constitution only happens in la la land, Republican’s real problem with 999 comes from the idea that the three taxes under 999 will eventually grow under democrat control, as articulated by Grover Norquist. Yet, are their fears premature?

An entire generation of voters is massively disappointed with the Democratically controlled government and administration they voted for in 2008. Additionally, cities in blue states are filling for bankruptcy, Republican Governors are balancing budgets of purple and blue states. Charter school and voucher programs are vastly out preforming public schools. The democratic Messiah threw Israel under the bus twice and has been shamed by Palestine and Iran’s bold actions. Drug cartels are terrorizing/recruiting Hispanic students on the Southern unsecured boarder. Black unemployment is at record levels under the first black president. The LRB is blocking job creation in the United States. Socialist solutions for Health Care are crumbling. Mediscare has lost his effectiveness with senior citizens NY-9 and NV-2. The Obama Card brought a 30pt race within 3pt. European socialism is collapsing before our very eyes. The free market has given rise to new types of micro lending companies. The 2010 redistricting under republican control with a shift in electoral votes from Blue to Red states. And a Black American who embodies the Conservative American Dream is the front runner in Iowa and South Carolina in the “racist” GOP. Also he has actually has gotten people excited about throwing out a progressive tax code that exempts 47% and replacing it with a flat/fair hybrid. On top of everything a qusi-Celebrity fierce Conservative woman with 100% name idea who is gearing up to campaign for a wave of conservative Senators and Congressmen

If the Stars were ever aligning for the GOP to peel major portions of the hodge podge of demographics that make up the democratic base, 2012 is that time. We need to not focus on fears assuming the Dems will be back in control of the house in 4 years but be focus on creating a Reagan like Economic Boom that will usher in a 40+ year Conservative majority in the House and possibly a filibuster proof senate in 2014.

Now is not the time to plan for defeat but to seize the once in a century opportunity. FDR seized the moment with unprecedented bold action and his new deal polices that have grown beyond sustainability and led to the 2nd great economic crisis of modern era.

If Conservatives are able draw bold and stark contrast between Obamanomics and Cainanomics, as FDR did with his new deal. We can prove to the American people that fiscal Conservatives and not moderates have the best economic polices and usher in another great period of prosperity and a chance to once again be the shining city on the hill.

“Which means that Romney and Perry are speaking to the Republican political elites. They want to impress the political junkies, the activists, the party leadership, the talking heads and the consultants with their detailed plans. But they’re simply not talking to the average Republican voter, nor are they talking to the average American voter.”

How exactly is Perry speaking to the Republican political elites?

It doesn’t take a brain surgeon to open there electric bill, and see the increased cost for lights heat etc. It doesn’t take a political junkie to realize that it now costs nearly double to fill their gas tank. When gas nears $4 per gallon it doesn’t take a high IQ to feel the outrage of why it is that high. It doesn’t take a brainiac to know that we are depending on those that don’t like us to have control over our oil supplies. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand that the cost of fuel drives almost every other cost including food.

If Cain’s 999 plan was so simple to understand and get across to people, why are there still so many valid questions, some still unanswered? Why are many credible economists still in the dark as to how exactly it will work, and is 9 the magic number. Where did 9% come from? Has anyone come back with any type of scoring of the plan. Does anyone know if the plan will adequately pay down our already incurred debt, and unfunded liabilities like SS and Medicare? I really don’t think those questions have been answered. Many people are still wondering if they will be in the pay more category, or the pay less category.

Cain’s plan is a tax reform plan that has little to do with immediate job creation, unless of course you include the increase in government jobs to collect and manage the new sales tax.

Perry’s plan is an economic plan, a regulatory reform plan, and can create immediate jobs in the private sector. Perry’s plan immediately creates a sense of economic stability in which job creators feel safe to hire and to expand, knowing they won’t be shut down by the EPA with onerous, impossible to meet, EPA regulations. The EPA regulations hurting so many businesses have not been passed by Congress. They have been government edicts unleashed on the country by a president who accomplishes his goals with or without Congressional approval. A President Perry can just as easily disband those job killing regulations without the input or control of Congress, with the stroke of a pen. On day one, Perry can fire every person in the EPA, and have a new team set to take over. Perry is very familiar with the EPA regulations as they have harmed many businesses in Texas, and Perry has been bringing lawsuits against the EPA for years now. The federal judge in LA who ruled that the ban on off-shore drilling be lifted, has been ignored. Perry can immediately honor the lifting of that ban before we lose any more drilling platforms to foreign countries. The wells are there, sitting untapped by orders from the Obama admin.

If simplicity of message is the goal, I’ll suggest-

Cain- 9 9 9

Perry- Drill Baby Drill

There really isn’t anything difficult in understanding- Make What Americans Use, Use What Americans Make, Sell It To The World!

If Perry’s plan is to difficult to understand, why ask Cain to adopt it as his own, and run with it?

Scope is right. I believe “drill baby drill” is 3 words and succinct enough. Oil drilling means jobs. Employment should be the focus of our message to beat Obama. Jobs, jobs, jobs.
Anyone can make an argument that 9-9-9 is a catchy phrase, but even 9-9-9 takes a lot of explaining when people ask, what does it mean and how will it affect me personally.
If you are talking on a purely marketing level then, yes, 9-9-9 is a catchy phrase, but it is far from simple in it’s actual details.
Joe average may actually have an easier time figuring out that if we drill for oil in the US then gasoline prices will go down and jobs will go up.
“Gas prices DOWN, jobs UP!” Does that work for you on a catchy advertising basis?