Jeffrey Birnbaum > Quotes

“For Darman, tax reform had a more fundamental goal—it addressed a deep and abiding problem in the American political and social psyche. The disintegration of the tax code over the past few decades had undermined people’s faith not only in the tax system, but in government itself, he believed.”
― Jeffrey Birnbaum, Showdown at Gucci Gulch

“The desperation in their voices makes it clear that big money is at stake. Their expensive suits and shiny Italian shoes give this hallway its nickname: Gucci Gulch.”
― Jeffrey Birnbaum, Showdown at Gucci Gulch

“McLure and Pearlman argued that the capital-gains break should be eliminated. Income from the sale of assets, they said, should be treated just like any other income. Egger provided powerful support for that view, saying that a third of the tax code was devoted to problems caused by allowing the preferential rate for capital gains.”
― Jeffrey Birnbaum, Showdown at Gucci Gulch