This graph showing "where taxes come from" can be found in a column by Derek Thompson at The Atlantic.
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Think Progress describes how corporations use their favorable position in the tax graph -- and the money they save by ducking their tax bills.
Two-thirds of the largest 200 U.S. corporations lobbied on at least one tax bill between 2007 and 2010, and here’s why: the majority of them ended up paying lower taxes in 2010.
The eight major corporations that spent the most on lobbying, for a total $540 million, all saw their tax rates decrease.
Ah! Lobbying! That's what we 81.6 percenters get instead of, say, college for our kids or just a secure retirement.
These companies are notorious for tax dodging, like ExxonMobil, which spent the most on lobbying and paid $565 million less in taxes. AT&T received the greatest return on lobbying, paying $7.3 billion less. Both of these companies spent even more on lobbying in 2011, with Exxon spending up by $300,000 and AT&T’s up $4,834,922. Exxon’s 2011 tax rate decreased from 17.6 to 13 percent in 2011.
The Huffington Post also pointed to a 2011 study finding that the 280 most profitable corporations paid an average 18.5 percent tax rate, benefiting from industry-specific tax breaks, loopholes and offshore tax shelters. ...Think Progress
Wow-ee! Sweet deal!
