Blackstone Group LP (NYSE: BX) Chief Executive Stephen Schwarzman, who became a billionaire thanks to the firm's recent initial public offering, won't be able to stop the U.S. Congress from making his firms pay higher taxes particularly as the presidential election looms.
Legislation proposed by Sens. Max Baucus (D-MT) and Charles Grassley (R-IA) would TRIPLE the amount of taxes that the New York-based company would pay annually. The company is arguing that the Baucus-Grassley bill raising taxes on private equity and hedge funds would deprive the government of revenue because it would discourage companies from going public.
Blackstone won't win too many friends on Capitol Hill with that argument since hedge funds already get a huge break from the IRS because they pay taxes at the 15% rate of partnerships instead of the 35% corporate tax rate. To many people and quite a few economists this just doesn't seem fair.
Politically speaking this also is a losing issue for Blackstone. Americans believe in the Horatio Alger myth that by hard work and luck anyone can become rich. The public, though, has little sympathy for people who climb their way to the top by cutting corners or getting breaks that they don't seem to deserve.
The Democrats in Congress are well attuned to this reality. For them, there is no better industry to target than hedge funds and private equity firms. To most Americans, the industry is mysterious and scary. What possible downside could they have in targeting the likes of Blackstone?