There are, of course, respectable arguments against the introduction of a VAT in this country. Sadly, they are not to be found in either the title (which may well not be the writer’s fault), or (at least) the first two paragraphs of this IBD editorial:

If VAT Is Rx For Deficits And Debt, Why Are VAT Users On The Brink?

No surprise that the worst financial basket cases all have a VAT. Iceland has the highest VAT rates, but this didn’t prevent its financial crisis and the near bankruptcy of its government. Italy’s VAT rates are almost as high, and its debt exceeds its GDP. Financial crises are looming in Spain and Portugal, and of course they have a VAT.

Greece has a VAT, too, and when politicians ran out of money to pay government employees for more than a year’s worth of work every year, they rioted in the streets.  Great Britain has a VAT, and its government finances are in the worst shape since World War II — its budget deficit is expected to be bigger than that of Greece…

There may be some people who believe that introducing VAT would by itself be the answer to the U.S. government’s broken budget, but I’d like to think that they are very few in number. My own suspicion is that a VAT could indeed be a part of the solution, but it certainly cannot do all the work by itself — and nor should it be expected to.

Turning to the argument that the financial woes of VAT-countries such as Greece, Italy, Britain and Iceland somehow disprove the idea that VAT can contribute to better balanced national finances, it is, at the very least, unconvincing, unless (I suppose) you are prepared to agree that the strong financial position of, say, Denmark and Sweden can be explained by the high marginal income tax rates levied in those countries.

You don’t want to accept that sort of logic? No, nor do I.