Don’t Tax Me But Give Me My Government Services

It seems as though everybody resents paying taxes but yet we all still want the government to provide services when we need or want them. Without taxes our roads would be impassable, bridges would be unsafe, emergency services would be almost nonexistent, there would be no public education, police or fire. In short, we would be living in Somalia, a country without a functioning government. While the United States continues its slide downhill toward a third world economy, the only institution large enough to prevent that from happening is the government. That is before the vast majority of Republicans in the House and Senate signed a no new tax pledge, binding them to oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rate for individuals and business; and TWO, oppose any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits, unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing tax rates.

The author of this pledge is Grover Norquist, the head of Americans for Tax Reform. While tax reform itself is not a bad thing, that is not what Grover Norquist or this pledge is about. In his own words, Norquist has very clearly laid out his agenda when he stated: My goal is to cut government in half in twenty-five years, to get it down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub. It is not about tax fairness or even about tax reform, but it is about reducing government and returning to a strict unregulated, untaxed free market economy that will leave millions of Americans behind.

Republicans make a show of shrinking government, while decrying big government, but have no qualms about funneling its largesse to the wealthiest among us with lavish tax cuts. In fact, those that rail the loudest against big government and taxes are the greatest beneficiaries. One example is in the imbalance of federal taxes paid by the citizens of the states. Currently thirty states are represented by Republican governors. Twenty-two of these receive more in federal tax expenditures than they pay in. On the contrary only nine states represented by a Democratic governor receive more than they pay in federal taxes.

One of those states living off the fat of the federal government is Virginia, currently represented in Congress by Eric Cantor, the majority leader of the House. Not only is Cong. Cantor a signer of the no tax pledge but he has taken the anti-tax mania to newer and more absurd heights. In the wake of Hurricane Irene, Cantor has called for all new spending in federal disaster assistance to be offset by cuts elsewhere in the federal budget. This at the same time that FEMA is being starved by budget cuts forcing it to reduce assistance to tornado ravaged parts of Missouri, in order to provide disaster assistance to areas ravaged by Irene. (it is worth noting here that Missouri is represented by a Democratic Governor)

Back in Virginia however, Mr. Cantor and the entire Virginia Congressional delegation has signed a letter asking for federal emergency assistance. So Mr. Cantor, like so many of his Republican colleagues has no trouble trying to have it both ways. Fight new taxes, force cutbacks in services that he does not believe in, while enjoying a greater return on federal taxes paid by his state; and, at the same time requesting additional federal funds in the form of disaster relief. It seems that Cong. Cantor’s plan is to force shrinkage of the federal government in all states but his own. But he is not the only one, in addition to Virginia, Republican governors in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Georgia are also seeking federal disaster assistance. Two of these states, Pennsylvania and Georgia, are on the list of states receiving more in federal funds than they pay. If these Republicans were true to their so-called ideals then they should use the excess funds that they receive from the federal government to pay for their disaster relief.

Eric Cantor Wants 'Matching Spending Cuts' on Hurricane Irene Victim Assistance Funds

However, if you are going to be hypocritical, then why not go all out and do it Texas size. Rick Perry, Governor of Texas and leading Republican presidential candidate, said this about taxes in an interview with James Robinson for Life TV: I think we are going through these difficult economic times for a purpose, to bring us back to the biblical principals of you know, you don’t spend all the money. You work hard for those six years and you put up that seventh year in the warehouse to take you through the hard times and not spending all of our money. Not asking Pharoah to give everything to everybody and to take care of folks because at the end of the day it’s slavery and we become slaves to government. Watch it here.

Perhaps Mr. Perry believes it is only appropriate for others to go back to those “biblical principles” but not for him. In his advocating for the federal government to provide federal disaster aid to his state to cope with the forest fires he stated: I think we have had 9,000 separate fires in the state of Texas. The federal government has only helped us with twenty-five of then, that’s inappropriate.

It would seem that what is really inappropriate here is that Governor Perry does not follow his own biblical interpretations. If Mr. Perry had saved in the seventh year to take his state through the hard times, as he preaches, then there would be no need to request federal disaster aid. It would appear that following his preaching on the bible and government is his way of telling others how to live. Another take on “do as I say, but not as I do.”

While I’m talking about Rick Perry and biblical interpretations I just can’t sign off without mentioning Michele Bachman and her evangelical preaching’s. Instead of seeing the recent natural disasters as one result of global climate change, Ms Bachman sees it as a message from above not to take better care of Mother Earth but as an economic message to the people of the United States when she says I don’t know how much God has to do get the attention of the politicians. We’ve had an earthquake, we’ve had a hurricane. He said “Are you listening to me here?” Curiously, she left out the runaway forest fires and the drought in Texas. It seems that God only gives messages when he disagrees with Democratic politicians.