Bmda: Kerry not the brightest bulb in the chandelier

But back to Mr. Kerry and his campaign against the businesses that he says are traitors to the US cause. What he may not realise – I must say he doesn't sound like the brightest bulb in the chandelier – is that the United States is itself a low-tax jurisdiction, engaging in classic tax haven behaviour. It imposes no tax on capital gains made by foreigners investing in the US, but it does tax its own citizens on such gains. It has been that way since the 1980s, and it was a smart move for the US to make, in that it has since attracted over US $1 trillion to US capital markets.

Mr. Kerry's charge against some American businesses, and the way he has made it, gives the impression that he is tackling some underhand business practice as low on the ethical scale as laundering drug money. But in fact, it is perfectly legal and above board for a company to move its headquarters offshore. A company's first duty is to make money for its shareholders, and if it can legally lower its costs, in this age of globalisation, by setting up in Bermuda, then it doesn't simply have a choice, it has an obligation to do so.
If that reality offends Mr Kerry, he should direct his efforts towards making the US tax system more competitive. Isn't that what the American business system is all about?