Parteibuch Aggregator Feed - Items from date 2010-09-01

Ben Domenech: Who Needs a Re-Education?

Ben Domenech — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 21:57:04 +0000

“We have a lot of Re-education to do,” Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said this week. And no wonder — once you’ve started with Rationing and Redistribution, it’s the third R of out-of-control government!

Sebelius claims senior citizens need the re-education the most, because they “have been a target of a lot of the misinformation.” Of course, what’s really happened is that Americans have learned more about Obama’s law, and what they’ve learned, they don’t like. The facts are now inescapable, for Sebelius and for the politicians who advocated for this measure — facts that detail the false nature of the case advanced by the president and his allies, and the true ramifications of this wrongheaded reform package foisted upon the American people. They’ve learned that they can’t keep their plan, even if they like it; they can’t count on lower costs; they can’t count on lower deficits; and they can count on more bureaucracy, more rationing, and more IRS involvement in your daily life.

Today, fewer than one-in-three Americans believe their family will be better off under ObamaCare. The same survey Nancy Pelosi touted last month as showing some positive views on the measure illustrates the movement. The Kaiser Family Foundation found that “support for health reform fell over the course of August, dipping from a 50 percent favorability rating in July to 43 percent, while 45 percent of the public reported unfavorable views.”

Americans have these views because of the litany of broken promises within Obamacare, detailed across thousands of websites, hundreds of reports and dozens of research papers released since its passage. They have these views not because they need to be taught a lesson by Kathleen Sebelius, but because they’ve noticed how the politicians and activists with all those big promises are awfully quiet now. They can’t even make the claim that the legislation will reduce costs or lower the deficit any more without getting laughed out of the room.

Maybe these politicians would’ve been better off if they’d read the bill in the first place. But not even Sen. Max Baucus D-MT , one of the leaders in the push for passage, had time to do that.

So who is it that needs a re-education? Not the American people, but the political leadership itself — a lesson that will likely come at the ballot box.

Follow Ben Domenech on Twitter.

Dan Mitchell: More Arguments against Obama’s Dream Tax

Dan Mitchell — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 19:56:27 +0000

The biggest long-term threat to fiscal responsibility is a value-added tax, as I’ve explained here, here, here, here, and here. So I’m delighted to see a growing amount of research showing that a VAT is bad news.

Jim Powell has an excellent column at Investor’s Business Daily that makes a rather obvious point about the wisdom or lack thereof of copying the tax policy of nations that are teetering on the edge of fiscal collapse this cartoon has the same message in a more amusing fashion .

Drums are beating in Washington for a value-added tax in addition to the “stimulus” taxes, health care taxes, energy taxes and other taxes President Obama has imposed and wants to impose on hard-pressed taxpayers. Supposedly a value-added tax is a magic elixir for curing budget deficits and excessive debt. Quack remedy would be more like it. If it worked, you’d observe that countries with a VAT had budget surpluses and no debt problems. But almost every country that has a VAT is plagued with budget deficits and excessive debt. … 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. Moreover, the OECD has acknowledged that “ VAT tax and transfer wedges have discouraged firms from offering employment and individuals from taking it, reduced employment and increased inequality.”

And a new study by Douglas Holtz-Eakin and Cameron Smith finds evidence that a VAT would lead to bigger government.

VATs provide a significant amount of revenue. …But do these significant revenues cause government spending to grow larger? Or is it the case that adoption of a VAT is evidence of the desire for a larger government so that the causal arrow runs from a taste for Leviathan to a VAT, and not the reverse? …we find a statistically significant dynamic relationship between the rate of VAT taxation and the size of government. Although no single study is definitive, this is the first rigorous evidence that a VAT causes government to grow larger. …countries that adopted a VAT did in fact experience, on average, a 29 percent increase in the size of government. …The estimated coefficient of 0.262 indicates that adopting a VAT is associated with larger government. This estimate is statistically significant. …our results shift the burden of proof to those who deny that VATs fuel increases in the size of the public sector.

This study jumps into a long-running chicken-or-egg debate in the academic literature about whether higher taxes lead to higher spending or whether higher spending leads to higher taxes. This causality debate is interesting, but I’m not sure it really matters. A VAT is a terrible idea if it triggers bigger government, and a VAT is a bad idea if it merely finances bigger government. But I suspect this study is correct. The key thing to remember is that Milton Friedman was right when he warned that “In the long run government will spend whatever the tax system will raise, plus as much more as it can get away with.” This means that a VAT will allow more government spending and no reduction in deficits and debt, which is exactly what we see in Europe and as Jim Powell noted in his column . Last but not least, this video summarizes the best arguments against a VAT.

Publius: No Help on the Horizon for Democrats

Publius — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 18:21:31 +0000

Political prognosticator Charlie Cook’s latest column in National Journal:

Labor Day is almost here and Democrats are still waiting for the cavalry to arrive. An exhaustive scan of the horizon reveals no rescuers and none of the things Democrats badly need to save them from tough midterm election losses on Nov. 2.

There are few signs of any meaningful recovery, and indeed there is more talk of a double-dip recession, plunging the country back into economic trouble between now and the end of the year. Unemployment seems stuck at 9.5 percent, reinforcing the view that last year would have been better spent focusing on the economy than on health care reform.

Democrats also needed a public re-evaluation of the new health care reform law. They needed the public to decide that it wasn’t so bad, that it was a good idea after all. That hasn’t happened, as pointed out by the Kaiser Family Foundation’s health care monthly tracking poll released this week. Favorable attitudes toward the new law dropped from 50 percent last month to 43 percent this month, and unfavorable views climbed from 35 percent to 45 percent. Twenty-nine percent of Americans believe that they and their families will be better off under the new law, while 30 percent say they will be worse off and 36 percent say it will not make much difference.

An interpretation of what has happened that could be considered extremely charitable to Democrats is that while the nation’s economy deteriorated rapidly, President Obama and the Democratic Congress checked the box on the economy with an unpopular stimulus bill and then became obsessed with passing a health care reform package. At best, Americans are ambivalent about that package, and quite a few believe it is horrifically flawed. Unemployment has been above 9 percent for 15 consecutive months, and that number is significantly higher among African Americans, Hispanics and young people, the groups that boosted Democratic fortunes in 2008.

Simply put, Democrats find themselves heading into a midterm election that looks as grisly as any the party has faced in decades. It isn’t hard to find Democratic pollsters who privately concede that the numbers they are looking at now are worse than what they saw in 1994.

The race-by-race outlook confirms the dire forecasts. Cook Political Report House Editor David Wasserman points out that at this point, 32 Democratic incumbents are running even or behind their Republican challengers in one or more public or private polls. At this point in 2006, when Republicans lost control of Congress, only 11 GOP incumbents were running even or behind.

Read the whole thing here.

Bob McCarty: Phil Hare Files FEC Complaint Against Veterans Group

Bob McCarty — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 16:50:36 +0000

Uh, oh! Phil Hare, the incumbent Democrat running for re-election in Illinois’ 17th Congressional District, is at it again, apparently sore at veterans like Medal of Honor recipient John F. Baker Jr. who are supporting his opponent, Republican Bobby Schilling.

With the help of James L. Moody, chairman of the Sangamon County Ill. Democratic Party, Hare — the same guy who said, “I don’t worry about the Constitution,” when asked about the Constitutionality of ObamaCare — filed a complaint Aug. 27 with the Federal Election Commission.

Hare’s target: Veterans for the Constitution, a group of military veterans whose stated mission is to seat Conservative leaders who truly represent the people and do not see the Constitution as an obstacle but as a document the founding fathers intended be upheld at all costs. The group, according to spokesperson Ken Moffett, is comprised of only a handful of active members who have managed to raise a whopping $6,000.

One has to wonder how a few thousand dollars raised by a small group of veterans could have such an impact on the re-election efforts of a sitting congressman who, as of July 15, reported having $855,863.18 cash on hand to spend on the general election Nov. 2.

Unlike Hare, the veterans he is attacking know how to work effectively and efficiently with other people’s money.

Capitol Confidential: Did Alexi Giannoulias Dodge the Draft in Greece?

Capitol Confidential — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 15:35:15 +0000

From 1998 to 1999, Alexi Giannoulias played professional basketball in Panionios B.C. Greece. That part we already knew.

But one thing we still don’t know is how an American with Greek citizenship was able to live in Greece without being drafted into the Greek military.

Under Greek law, all citizens must serve in the military once they turn 18. Much like in Israel, Greek citizens will perform a period of military service after high school.

Alexi Giannoulias was a college graduate when he came to Greece – an age meeting the requirement for military service. So how did he get around the requirement?

With many Americans holding dual Greek citizenship travelling to Greece, U.S. Embassy, Athens details the Greek government’s requirements for military service on its website.

According to the Embassy, Giannoulias could either have been considered a Permanent Resident of Abroad or a Draft Evader. If he was the former:

Permanent Residents of Abroad MONIMOI KATOIKOI EXOTERIKOU :

Persons who were born or established residence abroad before January 1st of the year of their 10th birthday. Permanent residents of abroad may remain in Greece, without incurring any military obligations for a cumulative period of SIX MONTHS within the same calendar year, only if they are registered as “permanent residents of abroad” monimos katoikos exoterikou with the appropriate recruiting office, and are in possession of a certificate confirming their status pistopoiitiko monimou katoikou exoterikou issued by the Greek consulate having jurisdiction over their foreign residence. The above certificate is valid for six months from the date of issuance.

If he was a draft evader:

Special arrangements for persons classified as DRAFT EVADERS

Detailed information concerning settlement of military obligations for draft evaders can be obtained from the nearest Greek Diplomatic or Consular authority or the appropriate recruiting authority in Greece.

As of 7/04 the Greek law for military obligations provides that draft evaders may travel and stay in Greece for a maximum of thirty days in total or partially within the same calendar year.

The American Embassy in Athens strongly suggests that persons classified as draft evaders, should first check with the nearest Greek Consulate or appropriate recruiting authority in Greece before traveling to Greece.

And before 7/04, that 30 day allowance didn’t even exist.

Alexi Giannoulias has concentrated much of his campaign on attacking Mark Kirk’s military record. Ironically, Mark Kirk actually volunteered to serve in the military. If Alexi Giannoulias found a way to evade his own obligations, that should be national news.

Nanny of the Month Aug 2010 : Police Chief Busts Guy Who Keeps Drunks Off the Street

Nanny of the Month Aug 2010 — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:59:30 +0000

Did you hear about the Oregon health inspector who shut down a seven-year-old girl’s lemonade stand? How about the California mayor who put the kibosh on a three-year-old’s vegetable stand?

Sure they’re both big-time buttinskys, but this month top honors go to the top cop who busted a guy who was offering free rides to keep drunk drivers off the road.

Presenting Reason.tv’s Nanny of the Month for August 2010: Quincy, Illinois Police Chief Rob Copely!

“Nanny of the Month” is written and produced by Ted Balaker. Associate Producer: Alex Manning; Animation: Meredith Bragg.

Approximately one minute.

To watch previous Nanny of the Month videos, go here.

Go to Reason.tv for HD, iPod, and audio versions of this and all our videos and subscribe to Reason.tv’s YouTube channel to receive automatic notification when new material is posted.

Thomas Del Beccaro: Too Late for the Democrats to Run Away

Thomas Del Beccaro — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 12:27:26 +0000

What a difference a year makes in the character of Democrats. In 2009, the Democrats in Congress were believing press accounts about the demise of the Republicans Party and the conservative movement. Amidst those false tailwinds, the Congressional Democrats took on America and its institutions. As the 2010 midterms approach, however, many of those same Democrats have turned tail and are running away from Pelosi, Reid and Obama amidst headlines like: “Democrats seek separation from Nancy Pelosi.” Unfortunately for them, it is too late to run away.

Former Republican Congressman J.C. Watts famously said that “Character is doing what’s right when nobody’s looking.” Watts, of course, was assuming that when the whole world was looking even politicians would do what was right. In 2009, the whole world was looking at the Democrats. Would they build a new level of consensus by charting a middle course? Or would they follow Reagan’s paradigm that Democrats campaign in the middle and govern on the Left?

Sure enough, Reagan proved right and the Democrats proved arrogant. According to Eric Cantor, a leading Republican in the House, Obama told him “elections have consequences…and Eric, I won” when discussing tax policy. Cantor also says Obama once told Republican leaders to “stop listening to Rush Limbaugh…and do what’s right for the people.”

Turns out Democrats stopped listening to voters and hardly did what was right for America. On issue after issue, they ignored public sentiment in favor of their ideological agenda. The stimulus bill passed on partisan terms. Cap and Trade was pursued with partisan ideology. The Health Care Bill was passed despite widespread opposition by Americans – including voters in the Kennedy seat and civilian terrors didn’t make legal common sense to most Americans any more then suing Arizona for a law that mirrored existing federal law.

Now that polling shows an unprecedented Republican advantage going into the Fall elections, many Democrats are not willing to stand by the leaders they supported earlier this year.

Stories of incumbent Democrats in difficult districts that refuse to be seen with Nancy or Harry or Obama are rampant. Hardly a noble choice, we read from Politico.com that “The Pelosi allies also said the speaker is ‘in the arena’ and knows that members will say whatever is needed in order to position themselves to win, even if that includes slamming her or Obama. Pelosi “has always said to members, ‘Do what you have to do,’ said another Pelosi ally.”

In the 2010 midterms, that strategy is not likely to work. After 20 months of Democrats spending America into oblivion while blaming their predecessors for every problem imaginable, there are more than enough voters way past tired of politicians who say whatever is needed or do what they have to do to get elected – not to mention the unemployed or the consumers and investors who have lost confidence in these Democrats.

Traditionally, a good deal of voters make up their minds five to six months out of a Fall election. With just sixty days to go until the November elections, Americans have seen what they don’t like and now are looking not only for the right policies, but politicians who will stand firm on the American values of self-reliance, hard work and limited government. In broad daylight last year, the Democrats ran from that. In the glare of the November elections, it is far too late for them to run from their leaders and their policies.

Wednesday Open Thread: Poland Edition

Wednesday Open Thread — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:03:38 +0000

Today, in 1939, Germany invaded Poland, ushering in World War II.