Follow this link to the article in the New York Times by David Leonhardt.

The actual headline is Yes, 47% of Households Owe No Taxes. Look Closer.  The official headline is misleading when compared to the sentence that I chose from the article as my headline.

The article also states that higher-income people are understating their income

The article provides a more even handed analysis of who is paying taxes and why than you are likely to get from the sound bites you hear on the radio or TV. I think my choice of emphasis in the headline makes it even more even-handed.

Oh, I should point out that some of the 10% who pay no net federal taxes are not among the poor.  I may not be in the 10% when you include all kinds of federal taxes, but I have not paid any net income taxes in two years. What George Bush has done for the economy has given me enough realized investment losses to offset any income taxes I might owe.