host: we will get a response from john mckinnon. but first of all, do you have any loopholes that you take advantage of? caller: i am a senior and i pay taxes on my social security and my pension. host: did you ever take a deduction for owning your own home or anything like that? caller: i don't own a home. host: ok, thanks. guest: he makes an interesting point. when obamacare is taking effect in the next few years, and there is a lot of uncertainty among businesses, small businesses in particular, that feel they are facing an expensive mandate to provide health care coverage to their workers. they feel there is a backup system is being put in place to provide coverage to those workers and other folks who are not able to get coverage in the workplace. there's a lot of uncertainty among businesses in particular about how it is going to affect them. that is part of the overall of the business community. if you are concerned about the burden that is going to create for individuals, i think that is really less of a concern, and particul

host: john mckinnon is a reporter for "the wall street journal."ere are the numbers to call. republicans, 202-585-3881. democrats, 202-585-3880. independent callers, 202-585- 3882. let's go to the phones. good morning. caller: hi. i like to talk about two sections of the economy that pay very little. apple computer has operations abroad. they play low wages and help lose jobs here. they pay no taxes on what they make. they operate abroad. they have access to american markets. there are the tax so-called charitable foundations who pay no taxes. two of the richest men in our country, warren buffett and gates put all their $140 billion into a charitable trust. i like to hear your comments about these things. host: do you take advantage of deductions? caller: very little. they tax my social security. host: ok. john mckinnon. guest: the caller makes two good points. major corporations pay lower tax rates. high-tech companies pay very low tax rates. this is a problem that companies around the world are a part of. u.s. companies are not the only ones. the

said during the process of negotiating a deal, you'll see some of those. >> host: john mckinnon is a reporter for "the wall street journal." we are talking about tax loopholes and deductions.

joining us is john mckinnon from "the wall street journal." what are loopholes and deductions?: loopholes or tax breaks of all different sorts. whether you like a loophole depends where you sit. deductions are the ones most people are most familiar with. the big itemized deductions are the home mortgage interest deduction. the deduction for charitable contributions is important. there are all kinds of other breaks. there are some that are big that people may not be aware of. the health care that we get a work represents a big source of income to a lot of people. it doesn't count as income on your taxes. that is a giant break in itself and known as an exemption. there are other breaks that exist. the earned income tax credit goes to the working poor. then folks with children get a child credit that is a lucrative credit, worth $1,000 per child right now. congress loves tax breaks. host: is there a difference between a deduction and tax credits? guest: a deduction is something you take off your income. a credit is something that is taken away from the tax that you owe. if you owe

mckinnon on. >> bob: can you do something that is not self-promoting? >> greg: no. storm the first day of hanukkah. celebrate a happy holiday. that is it for us. have a great weekend, everyone. >> john: another weekend no, deal on the fiscal cliff. how close one is depends on whom you believe. this is "special report." ♪ ♪ >> john: good evening. i'm john roberts in for bret baier this evening. deadlock, gridlock, stalemate, whatever you call it. most people in washington seem to think we are there. we have just four more weekends to go before america goes over the most talked about piece ovate i of real estn the world, the fiscal cliff. ed henry tells us not everyone is pessimistic. >> reporter: literally snapping his fingers, vice president joe biden today suggested it will be easy to finish a deal with congress to avoid the fiscal cliff. >> it would take 15 minutes from the time the decision is made by the speaker of the house to pass and make permanent middle class tax cut. the president would probably have me sprint up to the hill to bring the bill down for him to sign. it can be done like that. it is not complicated. >> greg: speaker bane -- >> reporter: speaker john boehner no