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What is this?
It seems Democrats are fiscally minded
Published Thursday, July 30, 2009
This letter is responding to Freeborn County Republican Chairman Al Arends’ Tribune column critical of Robin Brown’s voting on several issues. He lists her votes to:
1. Eliminate funding for JOBZ, which helps finance new businesses.
2. Eliminate deductibility of interest paid on home mortgages.
3. Limit total deduction for charitable contributions.
4. Eliminate deductions and tax credits for donated organs.
5. Tax home heating oil.
6. Raise the income tax rate on those making over $300,000 per year.
Al feels that these votes of hers were not good decisions for our state or our nation.
All of us are aware of the shortage of government funds at every level — school districts, local and county governments, and state and federal — and of the difficulty of balancing all of them, especially the monstrous federal budget with lower income tax receipts and all of the anti-recession spending going on.
It you’ll recall, the last time we had a balanced federal budget was under Clinton. It was under George Bush that the federal budget ballooned. We went to war in Iraq and made no attempt to raise taxes to cover the expense of the war. Over the last 20 years party-line positions on government debt have pretty much reversed. It used to be that the Republicans were the ones that wanted balanced budgets and low debt levels, and it was the Democrats that supported more social programs and pushed for higher government spending levels.
In this case, the Democrats, Robin Brown among them, are trying to raise taxes and cut expenses to achieve some level of budget balance which good management would have them do.
I’m sure that Robin Brown would consider any suggestions the Republican Party might offer which would cut government expenses and/or increases government income.
Certainly Al Arends is to be commended for taking on his party’s county chairmanship and for fostering a local dialogue on political questions. Our nation requires two healthy political parties to function at its best. And I’m sure Robin Brown would give careful consideration to any positive suggestions he might offer. Al has listed several measures he didn’t like her vote on. What measures could he suggest that would better serve our country?
George Ehrhardt
Albert Lea
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Comments
Posted by outoftownlandlord (anonymous) on July 30, 2009 at 1:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
George I am sure the state will take any check you write them. So how much can we put you down for? It is real easy to spend other people's money.
I think you fit into this quote very well. “The problem with socialism is that you eventually, run out of other people’s money.” – Margaret Thatcher
Posted by realchange (anonymous) on July 30, 2009 at 2:51 p.m. (Suggest removal)
This is so ridiculous it only makes a little bit of sense as a joke. Are you kidding me? Remember that he won't raise taxes on 95% of the population. You guys were lied to, you believed this false mesiah.....You can't take more and more and more from we the people, we are hurting to, thanks to our record setting spending going on lately. We have to cut back, our government has to cut back. Not take and take and take for all the pork.
Posted by badjuju (anonymous) on July 30, 2009 at 3:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Hey George, you have the big bucks, share a little with the goverment, you are one of the few who can afford it.
Posted by Culture_Warrior (anonymous) on July 30, 2009 at 5:40 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Georgie, ya don't raise taxes on people who are already crippled finacially, especially small buisness owners who are the job providers! Wise up.
Posted by mankind (anonymous) on July 30, 2009 at 6 p.m. (Suggest removal)
.I see that the local GOP is alive and well in the commit section again with lots of put downs. Why is there always so many commits on political issues always coming from the right? Why are they always putting down and belittling people and commits from liberals? Does the local GOP have a committee set up to attack any and all comments from liberals on this website? It sure looks and sounds like it.
Posted by mankind (anonymous) on July 30, 2009 at 6:37 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I see that the local GOP is alive and well in the comment section again with lots of put downs. Why is there always so many comments on political issues always coming from the right? Why are they always putting down and belittling people and comments from liberals? Does the local GOP have a committee set up to attack any and all comments from liberals on this website? It sure looks and sounds like it.
Posted by outoftownlandlord (anonymous) on July 30, 2009 at 8:37 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Just because we believe in common sense and small government does not make us part of the GOP. It makes us Americans.
Posted by leftys2221 (anonymous) on July 31, 2009 at 11:24 a.m. (Suggest removal)
No it makes you GOP. How big of debt did the Bushman put us in? Two wars and no higher taxes? What a hero. Same with our governor. Cut all that you can from the mentally ill and disabled but hey, at least he didn't raise taxes. These new fees that small businesses pay on things to the state or not taxes at all.
Posted by GH2ORepub (anonymous) on August 2, 2009 at 2:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)
My understanding of history was that Republicans held Clinton’s feet to the fire to get a balanced budget.
The market really took off under Clinton and Bush when the Republicans controlled Congress. I know that because I converted a lot of my market gains then to insured assets. I did so because one never knows when the politicians will foul things up.
Tax receipts were really on the upswing then. If the Congress hadn’t screwed up Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac the situation would have improved. I really believe we would have reduced the deficit over time once the war, Katrina, etc. were behind us. Give credit here to the Democrats especially Senator C. Dodd and Rep. B. Frank for messing that situation up.
Tax receipts for 2008 under Pres. Bush for instance were 4.5% greater than expenditures.
I think Pres. Bush and Treasury Sec. Paulson scared the heck out of everyone and that caused the financial down turn. The Obama crew did not help at all. They should have let the car companies go bankrupt right away. That is the correct way to go as history readily shows. I really believe we would be farther along in recovery if we had done so.
I certainly don’t see the Democrats cutting out wasteful spending or spending of any kind. The Republicans made some mistakes, but those mistakes pale into insignificance when compared to the trillions in debt currently advocated by the Democrats.
Posted by policemisconduct (anonymous) on August 3, 2009 at 11:42 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Fake Economy built by Bush elites like yourself George is why we(not including you) are in the mess we are...
Fake Home Values!!!
Fake Stock Market!!!
Fake Financial System!!!
Fake Employment numbers based on the above situations!!!
You rich sob's are mainly the ones to benefit from the infamous Bush Tax cuts.
GOP Screwed the people with lies and cheats like no others in history and they will not be forgotten anytime soon.
Posted by youthinkso (anonymous) on August 3, 2009 at 10:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Bush or Obama? Obama or Bush? What about Clinton? All these guys had the job of leading our nation. Long ago that turned into who gets the blame. The truth is, if I remember my American Gov class, that the Constitution gives the power of the purse to the House of Representatives. We call them the "Bush Tax Cuts" because he wanted them, and he signed them into law. The truth is that someone in the House had to write the bill, a committee (probably multiple) had to approve the bill, the House had to approve (not difficult with a Republican Controlled House), and then the Senate had to approve (much more difficult being that the Democrats controlled the Senate). They passed and he signed it.
The point that we all tend to miss is not the pork or the war or the taxes or whatever. It is simply that our elected representatives do not prioritize as if the money they are spending were their neighbors money. In fact I doubt they even consider that the guy sweeping the floor of a business is the guy paying for anything.
We hear our candidates and leaders say "we all want the same thing". Well what exactly is that?
I want:
1. security from harm (i.e. a good military, police force, fire department, etc...)
2. Safe roads and bridges (a working infrastructure)
3. A world class education system worthy of a country that acts as a world leader
4. A clean environment.
These are things that I don't think we can do privately (or at least do well privately).
If Congress, or even the Minnesota State Legislature figured out how much money we were going to take in as revenue in the coming year, and then started with the high priority stuff, then they would have to convince us of the need to pay for the extras. I think we would have what the politicians say we want. As it is in St. Paul, they spend the first 2-3 months spending our money on stuff we couldn't care less about. And when the money is all gone, our state reps tell us we NEED to raise taxes because roads are important or education is important. It's like buying the expensive video games units, expensive TV's and then saying "... oh, I better get another job to pay for food and shelter". Ridiculous! But we fall for it every year.
Posted by ErnieGann (anonymous) on August 4, 2009 at 7:50 p.m. (Suggest removal)
So many issues.
Youthinkso says that we need safe bridges--yet despite the Obama "stimulus"--money is NOT going to bridge repair--it takes too long to engineer and fabricate. In fact, despite being sold as a construction project, ("shovel ready") only 10% is set for actual construction--the rest goes into the rat hole of Dem social programs. Another example of taking the easy way out--the money is simply "feel good".
Several Dems pine for the "balanced budget" of Clinton--unmindful that ONLY CONGRESS CAN SPEND MONEY--and Clinton LOST Congress in 1994. Give us Newt Gingrich and a truly CONSERVATIVE Congress (regardless of party) and you can do it again.
GH2ORepub (love the moniker!) has it exactly right. The Repubs spent like--DONKS! But it was NOTHING like the king of all spenders--this Administration--who has run up a deficit bigger than ALL 43 previous Presidents--COMBINED!
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