Whoopi Goldberg May Be the Anti-Buffett for Foes of `Death Tax'

By Alison Fitzgerald

Dec. 11 (Bloomberg) -- When Warren Buffett testified before a U.S. Senate committee last month in support of the estate tax, his words echoed across the country in news stories and on Internet blogs.

Now opponents of the tax are hoping they've found an advocate with an equally influential megaphone: Whoopi Goldberg.

Goldberg, who called the estate tax ``horrible'' on the ABC TV talk show ``The View'' last week, doesn't plan to get involved in any activist groups opposing what she and they call the death tax, said her spokesman, Brad Cafarelli. Anti-tax groups such as Americans For Tax Reform and the American Family Business Institute don't mind; they're already using her words in their campaigns.

``Her statement is all we need,'' said John Kartch, a spokesman for Americans for Tax Reform, the Washington-based group led by Grover Norquist that is best known for getting political candidates to pledge not to enact new taxes. Goldberg's anti-estate tax position was discussed at a recent meeting of conservative groups hosted by Norquist.

Congress is under pressure to reach an agreement on the future of the estate tax because a 2001 law gradually phases it out through 2010, when it will be fully repealed for one year. The tax is scheduled to return in 2011 with a top rate of 55 percent on estates worth more than $1 million.

Lost Revenue

Abolishing the estate tax would cost the federal government $24 billion in foregone revenue for the 2011 fiscal year, and $340 billion over a 10-year period, according to the Treasury's analysis of President George W. Bush's budget proposal.

Estate-tax advocates say repeal would benefit only the richest families while widening U.S. income disparity. Opponents say the estate tax threatens small family businesses and farms because heirs are often forced to sell the business to be able to pay the levy.

Dick Patten, president of the American Family Business Institute, who also runs a Web site called www.NoDeathTax.org, said he's trying to reach out to Goldberg to see if she'll join the cause.

``I'd very much like to get to her and see if there's any way we can send out complementary messages,'' Patten said.

Last week on ``The View,'' Goldberg interrupted an introduction of presidential candidate Ron Paul, who wants to abolish the Internal Revenue Service, to rail against the estate tax.

``I'd like somebody to get rid of the death tax,'' she said. ``That's what I want.''

Buffett Testimony

Patten said Goldberg, 58, may prove to be a valuable counterbalance to famous estate tax defenders, including Buffett, 77, the billionaire chairman of Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Buffett testified to the Senate Finance Committee last month that Congress should keep the tax in place.

``When Warren Buffett testified, there were all these articles that mentioned only him,'' Patten said, adding that Buffett ``sucked up all the oxygen.''

Other billionaires have joined Buffett in urging Congress to keep the estate tax. Bill Gates, 52, the world's richest man and founder of Microsoft Corp., told a Senate panel in March that he agrees with his father, William H. Gates, who wrote a book in support of the estate tax. George Soros, a billionaire investor, joined Buffett in signing a petition sponsored by an activist group called Responsible Wealth, which calls on lawmakers to preserve the tax.

Only ``a small sliver'' of wealthy people pay the estate tax, said Mike Lapham, director of Boston-based Responsible Wealth. ``We're talking about taxing dead millionaires,'' he said. ``To the extent that we lower that tax, we're going to end up pushing that burden onto lower- and moderate-income people.''

Long-Time Views

Goldberg's spokesman said the actress hasn't yet been contacted by any advocacy groups and said she isn't looking to become more involved in advocating for estate-tax repeal. ``But it's not the first time she has spoken on the topic,'' Cafarelli said in an e-mail. ``These are views she's held for a long time.''

On the broadcast, which is watched by about 1 million women ages 18-49, according to Nielsen Media Research, Goldberg said, ``If I give something to my kid and I already paid the tax, why do I have to pay it again because I died?''

``It doesn't matter if you have or you don't have money. Once you paid your taxes, it should be a done deal,'' said Goldberg, who has a daughter and three grandchildren.

While Goldberg and other opponents call the levy the ``death tax,'' advocates counter by calling its repeal the ``Paris Hilton Tax Cut,'' referring to the hotel heiress.

Lawmakers are considering a compromise that would exempt estates worth several million dollars from the levy and lower the tax rate below 55 percent.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alison Fitzgerald in Washington at Afitzgerald2@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: December 11, 2007 00:06 EST

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