Republicans demand higher taxes. No, really!

Republicans want to raise your taxes. Republicans want to raise your taxes. Republicans want to raise your taxes.

Tell your family and friends - especially the conservatives you know - because it's true.

As part of last December's deal that extended the Bush tax cuts by two years, employees' share of the payroll tax was temporarily decreased from 6.2% to 4.2% for 2011.

As most of you know, the payroll tax only applies to the first $106,800 earned per year, meaning the more you make above that cap (which President Obama has expressed interest in lifting), the less of an impact you will feel from a change in that rate (compared to the amount you actually make). If the payroll tax cut is allowed to expire at the end of this year, those with smaller incomes would be disproportionately harmed.

Naturally, that's what congressional Republicans want:

Many of the same Republicans who fought hammer-and-tong to keep the George W. Bush-era income tax cuts from expiring on schedule are now saying a different temporary tax cut should end as planned. By their own definition, that amounts to a tax increase.

We've all heard the argument from Republicans that tax cuts create jobs. It's been ten years since the Bush tax cuts (which disproportionately benefit the wealthy) went into effect, and during those ten years, five of my relatives have lost jobs (to end up with lower-paying jobs). Meanwhile, my employment at the moment consists of bartending 2-3 times per month - not a job for me.

But tax cuts for the lower and middle classes make more sense. What do those who aren't as well off do with the money they make? They usually spend it or pay off debts. Unlike those who are wealthy, they can hardly afford to save much. Thus, reducing the payroll tax and reducing income taxes on those who are less well off is more likely to help the economy than trusting in trickle-down economics - based on a theory which has failed time and time again.

But with an election nearing, and congressional Republicans making having admitted that defeating Obama is their #1 priority, said Republicans have come out in support of something they have traditionally opposed: Higher taxes!

The 12-month tax reduction will cost the government about $120 billion this year, and a similar amount next year if it's renewed.

That worries Rep. David Camp, R-Mich., chairman of the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee, and a member of the House-Senate supercommittee tasked with finding new deficit cuts. Tax reductions, "no matter how well-intended," will push the deficit higher, making the panel's task that much harder, Camp's office said.

Yep, facing the likelihood that the President will be re-elected if the economy gets better, Dave Camp is suddenly worried about the impact that tax cuts on ordinary people might have on the deficit.

Then why did Camp and other Republicans enthusiastically support the Bush tax cuts of 2001, which were more than 10 times as costly to the government and which have contributed more to the national debt than even the costly wars in Iraq and Afghanistan?

(Of course, why did Camp and other Republicans enthusiastically support the wars in Iraq in the first place? But I digress.)

It all comes back to the sentiment expressed in Mitch McConnell's infamous statement that "The single most important thing we want to achieve" is to make Obama lose in 2012. Not to focus on job creation, not to focus on reducing the deficit (which would happen if more jobs were created), but to stop this President from winning next year.

To them, the threat of a double-dip recession brought on by woes in Europe is not as dangerous as the threat that the most successful president in decades (per Rachel Maddow) just might be given a second term by the nation that decisively voted him in three years ago.

To them, denying the Nobel Laureate a second term is more important than doing what makes economic and moral sense.

To them, stopping our freely elected President from serving our country for another four years is more important than being patriotic and doing what's best for our country.

To them, making the less fortunate suffer is okay (even though the Bible, in which they claim to believe, says otherwise) if that's what it takes to defeat this President.

To them, defeating the constitutional-law-professor-turned-Chief-Executive is worth walking back their anti-tax pledges and other 'principles.'

Amash blasts both parties, then raises money for one of them just hours later

What say ye, Congressman?

I've had enough of each party blaming the other for this debt crisis that they jointly got us into. I implore my colleagues to cut back on the partisan rhetoric and think instead about the American people, who are on the brink of ruin because of Congress' persistent refusal to act responsibly.

Interesting that Amash would say that.* Especially given that just a few hours after he posted that, he raised some cash for the Party of Palin.

Young Republicans who want to meet Calley will have a chance Monday at a $100-a-head fundraiser hosted by “The Young Party-ers,” the Kent County GOP’s new initiative to recruit young professionals.

Calley, the second-youngest lieutenant governor in state history, will be joined by U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, the second-youngest member of Congress, at the Republic Restaurant, 45 S. Division Ave.

This is probably not the first you've heard or read of the 'both-parties-are-at-fault-for-what's-going-on-in-Washington' canard. And I'm sure it won't be the last, since polls show that Americans blame Republicans for the economic mess we're in, the mess DC's in, and so forth.

But it's interesting that Amash would raise money for a Party he blames for the deficit.

*I actually agree with him on the second sentence of his status. – Congress (or at least many leaders thereof) have not done their jobs. Still, it's a heck of a stretch to say that both parties "jointly got us into" the debt.

Who Said It?

Dear Howard:

This letter is to ask for your help and support, and that of your colleagues, in the passage of an increase in the limit on the public debt.

As Secretary Regan has told you, the Treasury’s cash balances have reached a dangerously low point. Henceforth, the Treasury Department cannot guarantee that the Federal Government will have sufficient cash on any one day to meet all of its mandated expenses, and thus the United States could be forced to default on its obligations for the first time in its history.

This country now possesses the strongest credit in the world. The full consequences of a default or even the serious prospect of default by the United States are impossible to predict and awesome to contemplate. Denigration of the full faith and credit of the United States would have substantial effects on the domestic financial markets and on the value of the dollar in exchange markets. The Nation can ill afford to allow such a result. The risks, the cost, the disruptions, and the incalculable damage lead me to but one conclusion: the Senate must pass this legislation before the Congress adjourns.

I want to thank you for your immediate attention to this urgent problem and for your assistance in passing an extension of the debt ceiling.

Sincerely,

Ronald Reagan

This is an actual letter that Mr. Conservative himself sent to then-Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker in 1983. Fast forward to 2011, and some House Democrats have passed it around to their Republican colleagues.

President Obama also mentioned on Friday that Reagan raised the debt ceiling 18 times.

No wonder we haven't heard much about Reagan since his 100th birthday this year - tea partiers are against what he stood for, because darn it, he was too liberal!

Hoekstra flip-flops, will run for Senate after all

From WOOD TV8 comes news that Congressman-turned-lobbyist, 2010 gubernatorial candidate, Twitter aficionado, and breacher of security Pete Hoekstra has flip-flopped on running for US Senate against Debbie Stabenow.

The Associated Press has learned that former U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra plans to run for the seat held by Democratic Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow.

Two Republicans with knowledge of his decision say the Holland Republican has changed his mind about staying out of the race and plans an announcement soon.

Both spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision had not been made public.

...

Earlier this year, Hoekstra became a senior adviser at Dickstein Shapiro LLP, a law and lobbying firm in Washington, D.C.

Hoekstra would enter the race as the most viable of the Republican candidates - and almost certainly the initial frontrunner in the Republican primary - thanks in part to his 18 years in Congress and his unsuccessful 2010 bid for Governor, in which he finished second behind Rick Snyder.

However, will Hoekstra get through the Republican Senate primary? Will tea partiers accept someone who voted to raise the debt limit on five different occasions during the Bush era? Or will he suffer the same fate as Rob Simmons, Mike Castle, Scott McInnis, and other Republicans who got teabagged in their Senate runs in 2010?

Oh, and will he get Right to Life's endorsement? He blamed his 2010 loss on Right to Life, which endorsed then-Attorney General Mike Cox instead of Hoekstra - likely helping to split the teabagger vote and enabling the relatively 'moderate' Snyder to win with 37% of the vote. (Seems odd to think Snyder was/is believed to be relatively moderate, but that's today's Republican Party.) In Michigan, ticking off Right to Life is the Republican equivalent of a Democrat ticking off labor - not a good idea, to say the least.

For now - ten months before the filing deadline and more than a year before the primary - Hoekstra is the fourth Republican to enter the race, the other three being Oakland County Drain Commissioner John McCulloch, former probate judge Randy Hekman, and businessman Peter Konetchy. Of those three, I had only previously heard of McCulloch - and I've been following politics closely for 11 years. I wouldn't be surprised to see one, two, or all three of them bow out with Hoekstra now in the race - but then again, as I alluded to earlier, Hoekstra's ripe for a tea party challenge, and it's possible one of those three (or someone else) could jump in.

Democrats have a lot that we can hang around Hoekstra's neck. First is the obvious - he decided not to run, then he decided to run, raising questions about his ability to make a decision and stick to it. He also has 18 years of Congressional votes to answer for, many of which indicate how out-of-touch he is, while others (such as the aforementioned debt limit increases) could show hypocrisy on his part (provided he opposes raising the debt ceiling - which he will probably have to if he wants to win the Republican primary).

Of course, Stabenow also has a lot going FOR her. For one thing, Michigan leans Democratic. Yes, we had a really rough time of it here in 2010, primarily owing to appallingly low turnout - but 2012 should see better turnout with a Presidential race at the top of the ticket. In addition, Democrats have won 11 of the last 12 US Senate races in Michigan.

Michigan's first female Senator, Stabenow was one of the first three women to defeat incumbent US Senators (along with Carol Moseley Braun in the 1992 Democratic primary and Maria Cantwell, also in the 2000 general election). She served four years on the Ingham County Commission, twelve in the state House, four in the state Senate, and four in the US House before upsetting Spence Abraham in 2000. She was the first woman to preside over the State House, so she's quite the trailblazer when it comes to women in Michigan politics.

While Carl Levin has done so much in the areas of US foreign policy and defense, Stabenow, Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, has been a tireless, 'behind-the-scenes' leader among Senate Democrats when it comes to domestic policy, particularly regarding healthcare and the environment. Stabenow has also done a lot to help reduce the inflow of Canadian trash into Michigan. Drilling for oil in the Great Lakes? That's illegal thanks to a law Stabenow sponsored.

Stabenow is used to facing close election contests - and winning. She was elected to the House by 25,000 votes and the US Senate by 43,000 votes, both times beating Republican incumbents. She has $4 million in the bank for 2012 - which puts her at a solid advantage.

Countless Republicans - including all of Michigan's current congressional delegation - had decided against challenging her, and until yesterday, Stabenow was drawing rather weak opposition. My feeling is that they'd rather sit out 2012 and wait until 2014, when Carl Levin (then 80 years old and finishing his 6th term) would likely retire (he was expected to retire in 2008 but decided instead to run).

Now comes a more formidable challenger for Stabenow - one with name recognition and a lot of respect within establishment Republican circles. But is it too little, too late? Would the people of Michigan really turn down a trailblazing incumbent they've twice supported in favor of a controversial lawmaker-turned-lobbyist?

Whatever the case, it's gonna be a tough challenge for Hoekstra to get elected to the Senate in a Presidential year in Democratic-leaning Michigan. But anything is possible, so stay tuned.

Planting a vegetable garden? You're under arrest!

Don’t even think about planting organic vegetables in your front yard if you live in Oak Park, Michigan!

When Julie Bass planted a vegetable garden in her front yard, the last thing she expected was to be visited by city enforcement officers, ticketed for a code violation then charged with a misdemeanor and facing jail time for refusing to remove the plants.

Yes. Jail time. For planting a frickin’ VEGETABLE GARDEN.

The Bass story began in the spring with the replacement of a sewage pipe in front of the home owned by Jason and Julie Bass in Oak Park, Michigan. Instead of replanting grass Julie decided to grow a vegetable garden to be able to feed her family quality organic vegetables while giving the neighborhood children something interesting to look at instead of a grassy lawn.

"We checked with the city, we checked with the neighbors, and we planted a garden. That’s it. We now find ourselves in a storm of controversy worthy of some high level mischief, seriously? It’s a garden, it’s not a high crime or treason or murder," said Bass. "It's vegetables."

(Emphasis mine.)

So even if it is YOUR property, and even if you paid for the property and pay taxes on the property, that’s still not enough for somebody at Oak Park City Hall.

Here's a local news report that includes pictures of the suspicious garden:



The Oak Park ordinance requires that the front yard contain “suitable" live plant material. Asked if she thought it was suitable live plant material, Bass said:

It’s definitely live, it’s definitely plant, it’s definitely material.

An official from the City of Oak Park said that according to Webster’s Dictionary, the word ‘suitable’ means ‘common.’ Apparently squash and beans aren't that common - who knew?

But as the anchor of the above story asked:

Is Julie’s vegetable garden really worth the city’s time and money?

The Bass family has supporters all around the world. This petition to the Oak Park Planning Director has more than surpassed its goal (and you can still add your name to it). This Facebook page is one of the busiest I've seen lately, with some of its 13,000+ fans posting their words of support for the Bass family literally every hour. As someone in Texas said:

If a garden can be established on the lawn of the White House, why not in an average neighborhood?

And from Australia:

we can plant anywhere in our own yard here in Australia ... sounds rediculous to me that she is being charged ... and why is the reason that vegetable gardens are not suitable anyway???? Weird way to revenue raise and damage a family.

Someone even sent her a ballad that she posted on her blog:

The scofflaw, Julie Bass,
Rejected trees and grass,
And took to life of crime
With parsley, sage and thyme.

Her crime is avant garde:
The beds in her front yard
Contain illegal greens,
Like peppers, peas and beans.

Be sure to add your name to the petition and check out the Facebook page and blog dedicated to the cause. With your help, we can send the message that planting a vegetable garden is a good thing and that the Bass family should not be bullied for making such a healthy, eco-friendly choice!

Is the US a Christian nation?

(Cross-posted at Daily Kos)

Well, are we a Christian nation?

Sure, more than 75% of us call ourselves Christian.

Sure, most of the Founding Fathers professed some belief in Christianity.

But are we a Christian nation?

Oftentimes we hear certain people claim that America is a Christian nation - then use that claim to justify intolerance toward non-Christians, or GLBT, or everything else.

Then we also hear people accusing America of kicking God out of our schools, insulting God, ignoring our "Christian heritage" and even persecuting Christianity. (What an insult to those Christians, especially Catholics, who have faced real discrimination. But I digress.)

And heaven help anybody who dares speak out in favor of the Constitutional separation of church and state! ("Religion and government will both exist in greater purity the less they are mixed together," said James Madison, Father of the Constitution.)

I am a Christian. I am one of the 75% of Americans who call ourselves Christians. And you know what? Sometimes I really wonder of America is the Christian nation some people claim it is.

EXHIBIT A

Isaiah 61:1

The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me; He has sent me to bring glad tidings to the lowly, to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives and release to the prisoners.

Versus:

"I have never seen a budget so badly skewed that has gotten so far past either house of Congress," said Greenstein, who lived through the Reagan tax cuts and budget wars of the '80s. "The bottom line is the House budget is a huge Robin Hood in reverse and its own form of class warfare. In terms of a budget that has actually passed any chamber, I think this is probably - by a substantial margin - the harshest to people at the bottom."

EXHIBIT B

Matthew 5:9

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

Versus:



EXHIBIT C

Matthew 19:23-24

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "Amen, I say to you, it will be hard for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."

Versus:



EXHIBIT D

John 3:16-17

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.

Versus:

In the public schools today, homosexual immorality is as accepted as any rebellious life, launching young people into a pattern of unfaithfulness, depression, and instability that will follow them throughout their lives, if not for repentance through Christ and change.

-

We must reject the forces of Islam, the government of Islam. If we do not do this, these three forces threaten our very existence and the greatness of America.

I'm not saying America is or isn't a Christian nation.

But we do need to beware those who say that we are a Christian nation while at the same time acting in very un-Christian ways.

And we need to challenge their assertion.

Would Jesus be pleased by what is being done in this country?

Non-Catholic forcefully defends the Catholic faith

Sam Miller, himself Jewish, says it better than anyone else I've seen or heard.

Why would newspapers carry on a vendetta on one of the most important institutions that we have today in the United States, namely the Catholic Church?

Do you know - the Catholic Church educates 2.6 million students everyday at the cost to that Church of 10 billion dollars, and a savings on the other hand to the American taxpayer of 18 billion dollars. The graduates go on to graduate studies at the rate of 92%.

The Church has 230 colleges and universities in the U.S. with an enrollment of 700,000 students.

The Catholic Church has a non-profit hospital system of 637 hospitals, which account for hospital treatment of 1 out of every 5 people - not just Catholics - in the United States today.

But the press is vindictive and trying to totally denigrate in every way the Catholic Church in this country. They have blamed the disease of pedophilia on the Catholic Church, which is as irresponsible as blaming adultery on the institution of marriage.

Let me give you some figures that Catholics should know and remember. For example, 12% of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner; 38% acknowledged other inappropriate sexual contact in a study by the United Methodist Church , 41.8% of clergy women reported unwanted sexual behavior; 17% of laywomen have been sexually harassed.

Meanwhile, 1.7% of the Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia. 10% of the Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia. This is not a Catholic Problem.

A study of American priests showed that most are happy in the priesthood and find it even better than they had expected, and that most, if given the choice, would choose to be priests again in face of all this obnoxious PR the church has been receiving.
The Catholic Church is bleeding from self-inflicted wounds. The agony that Catholics have felt and suffered is not necessarily the fault of the Church. You have been hurt by a small number of wayward priests that have probably been totally weeded out by now.

Walk with your shoulders high and you head higher. Be a proud member of the most important non-governmental agency in the United States.

Then remember what Jeremiah said: 'Stand by the roads, and look and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is and walk in it, and find rest for your souls'. Be proud to speak up for your faith with pride and reverence and learn what your Church does for all other religions.

The value of time

Found this in an email.

To realize the value of ten years:
Ask a newly divorced couple.

To realize the value of four years:
Ask a graduate.

To realize the value of one year:
Ask a student who has failed a final exam.

To realize the value of nine months:
Ask a mother who gave birth to a stillborn.

To realize the value of one month:
Ask a mother who has given birth to a premature baby.

To realize the value of one week:
Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realize the value of one minute:
Ask a person who has missed the train, bus or plane.

To realize the value of one second:
Ask a person who has survived an accident.

You go Justin Amash - to hell with direct election of Senators!

Justin Amash decided to have fun on his Facebook page on Saturday night. I don't begrudge him that; it's tough being a Congressman, especially one who has to spend time coming up with excuses for not serving the people.

So let's play along with him, shall we?

Just a few of the things that happened in 1913:

• Woodrow Wilson became President
  
• The Department of Commerce and Labor split in two, making the Department of Commerce and the Department of Labor
  
• The First Balkan War ended
  
• The Second Balkan War took place that summer
  
• Stainless steel was invented
  
• Henry Ford created the first assembly line
  
• The zipper was invented

Hmm. I can't see why Amash wouldn't like any of that. Maybe assembly lines are just too damn efficient? Maybe he has an objection to stainless steel? Maybe an intellectual like Woodrow Wilson shouldn't have become President?

Or does he have a - ahem - zipper problem?

Hmmmmmmmm.

Actually, there are a couple of events that took place that year that conservatives rue. In February of that year, the 16th Amendment was ratified (allowing for the collection of income taxes), and in December President Wilson created the Federal Reserve.

But there's something else that happened that year: The 17th Amendment was ratified. That's the amendment that provided that we, the people, would directly elect our US Senators, instead of having our state lawmakers elect our Senators (which is how it was done for this country's first 124 years).

I wouldn't blame him. With a rock-solid Republican legislature, Michigan would have a Republican US Senator for the 2013-2019 term.

Instead, thanks to the 17th Amendment, Debbie Stabenow will probably remain in the Senate for those six years. Terri Lynn Land, Mike Rogers, Pete Hoekstra, and Candice Miller have all said they won't run against her - and now, neither will Thad McCotter.

Darn it, if not for the freedom to choose our own US Senators...

Ah! Now I see why Amash wants to get rid of 1913!

UPDATE: Whoa, look what I found on Twitter!






Wow! A guy with a Republican 'twibbon' praises Justin Amash's status, and includes both the 16th AND the 17th Amendments in a hashtag.

So if Amash himself is fine with the 17th Amendment, at least one of his conservative Republican followers wants to see it go!

So much for that love for freedom and liberty!

High-Speed Rail: Florida's Loss is Michigan's Gain

From the Detroit Free Press:

Michigan will get $200 million to upgrade rail lines and a share of another $336 million for new high-performance trains and other equipment to build a high-speed rail network between Detroit and Chicago, the Obama administration announced today.

The federal government is awarding $2 billion to expand high-speed rail nationwide, money that Florida turned back earlier this year, and Michigan was one of 24 states competing for the funding. The U.S. Department of Transportation said 15 states and Amtrak will receive money for 22 high-speed intercity passenger rail projects that the government said will connect 80% of Americans to high-speed rail in 25 years.

This is part of an important step the Obama Administration is taking to promote environmentally friendly travel - and the latest in a string of victories for Michigan eco-advocates, who last week helped Grand Rapids and other cities expand their public transit systems.

By turning down Florida's share of the money, Gov. Rick Scott did not simply stop this investment from being made. Instead, the money would simply be reassigned to other states. Tiday we learned that Michigan would be one of those states.

How will the funds be used?

The largest share of Michigan’s money, $196.5 million, will go to rehabilitate track and signals on a 235-mile section between Dearborn and Kalamazoo. In addition, Michigan and several other Midwest states including Illinois and Indiana will share $268.2 million to pay for 48 high-performance passenger rail cars and seven quick-acceleration locomotives.

These days, it is important for businesses and people to be able to move from one place to another quickly and with little cost. Since the majority of us Michiganians (NOT Michiganders, if you ask me!) live within 15 miles of an Amtrak station, this investment will be very helpful.

This news comes less than a week after voters in Grand Rapids, East Grand Rapids, Kentwood, Wyoming, Walker, and Grandville passed a millage increase to expand public transportation in the Grand Rapids metro area. The millage passed by a margin of 17,284-17,148. Other localities in the state passed similar measures last week.