I suspect no one reading this blog doubts the fact that the divide between rich and poor in the country is widening (if you do, well, you haven’t been paying attention). But, a couple of new pieces of evidence flew by my eyes this morning.

First, David Cay Johnston of The New York Times (who has consistently reported and explained the rip-offs in the tax system that benefit the wealthy) tells us today that the tax cut bill that Republican Congressional leaders have agreed to saves you and me about twenty bucks–but the top tenth of one percent save more than $82,000. It’s unfortunate that Johnston’s story is buried in the very back of the business section–so the editors of The Times do their best to marginalize what is an important story:

The tax cut bill that Senate and House leaders have generally agreed upon is expected to save Americans at the center of the income distribution an average of $20 each, according to estimates by the Tax Policy Center, a nonprofit research organization in Washington.

The top tenth of 1 percent, whose average income is $5.3 million, would save an average of $82,415. Those in the top group would see their tax bill cut 4.8 percent, while Americans at the center of the income distribution — the middle fifth of taxpayers, who will earn an average of $36,000 this year — could expect a 0.4 percent reduction in their tax bill, or about $20.

Those who make less than $75,000 — which includes about 75 percent of all taxpayers — would save, at most, $110 each. Those making more than $1 million would save, on average, almost $42,000.

The rest of the article is here.

And, then, over at the Economic Policy Institute, we find out how the Administration is trying to manipulate economic data and their meaning to buttress its claims that its irresponsible economic policies–tax cuts for the rich…oh, you know all these things–are helping average people. Of particular note in this short brief is the misrepresentation of data on income growth:

First, these measures represent the aggregate of trillions of dollars in income generated by the economy. Real disposable income (inflation-adjusted income after taxes) always tends to expand in recoveries because more persons are working. Disposable personal income (DPI) also includes income from business ownership, interest, and dividends, but is also lifted significantly by the high levels of executive compensation, as reflected in recent news reports…

This is a related point to one that I’ve made–government statistics that show total growth in anything in the economy (such as gross domestic product) really obscure the distribution of income and wealth and the growing chasm between rich and poor.