Buffett's Op-Ed on Taxes Too Little, Too Late

(TheStreet) -- Warren Buffett's opinion article in the New York Times, in which he volunteered to pay higher taxes and said his super-rich friends would be willing to do the same, has become a rallying cry for average Americans fed up with partisanship in Congress that led to a downgrade of the country's coveted triple-A rating. The only problem is that the billionaire investor's published view on tax breaks comes far too late after the debt-ceiling debate, and now Buffett's argument begs more questions about his timing, leadership and motivation. While the rich have been "spared," as he put it, from the shared sacrifice thanks to tax breaks, Buffett points out the inequity in the fact that the poor and middle class have been fighting wars for the U.S. while tightening their own belts. Buffett says he would raise rates immediately on taxable income in excess of $1 million, including dividends and capital gains. Those who make $10 million or more would see an additional increase, according to Buffett's proposal.

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