The root cause is the tax code itself. With so much in there, it is usually worthwhile having someone find ways for you to pay less tax. Or stretch things you

The root cause is the tax code itself. With so much in there, it is usually worthwhile having someone find ways for you to pay less tax. Or stretch things yourself for the same reason. (I also don't think anyone considers the tax code fair, providing yet another reason to exploit it.) The last number I saw was $12bn a year spent on filing taxes. It would be nice if that was deducted from the pay of the politicians as they'd have an incentive to actually fix things. If I somehow became president, I'd tell congress to cut the tax code by 10% a year. If they fail to do so, then every 9th paragraph would be automatically deleted. Or perhaps have the entire tax code read out and voted on, page by page each year to mandatory attendance.