Clipmarks | Entitlement spending Clips

No Tax Increase Needed for Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid...

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 02:39:55 GMT

clipped by: Rustee
clipper's remarks:

If Congress were to act responsibly (yes, an oxymoron), it would hold down the growth of spending, as was done in the late 1980s and late 1990s, and eliminate those government programs that do not meet a reasonable cost-benefit test. As has been shown before, such actions would quickly eliminate the deficit.

Clip Source: washingtontimes.com

Many of those who insist that tax increases are needed argue that the entitlement programs will grow more rapidly than the economy and they must be funded. The problem with this argument is that tax increases will slow economic growth, and that no amount of tax increase can fund these programs if they are allowed to continue to grow faster than the economy.

Other countries have solved, or are solving, the social security problem through privatization. The renowned economist, Jose Pinera, developed the world's first, major, privatized social security system when he was labor minister in Chile. The Chilean program has been in effect for 29 years, is fully phased in, and has provided the workers with a rate of return exceeding 10 percent per year compounded, resulting in many Chileans having a very large investment portfolio for retirement. The Pinera system has been so successful that more than 30 countries have now adopted it.

This program would be real constructive "change."

Tags: taxes, government

Obama's Stealth Socialism Decoded

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 07:45:46 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: He assumes the economy is a fixed pie, whereby the successful only get rich at the expense of the poor.

Following this discredited Marxist model, he believes government must step in and redistribute pieces of the pie. That requires massive transfers of wealth through government taxing and spending, a return to the entitlement days of old.

Of course, Obama is too smart to try to smuggle such hoary collectivist garbage through the front door. He's disguising the wealth transfers as "investments" — "to make America more competitive," he says, or "that give us a fighting chance," whatever that means.

Clip Source: www.ibdeditorials.com

Election '08: Before friendly audiences, Barack Obama speaks passionately about something called "economic justice."

And as president, "we'll ensure that economic justice is served," he asserted. "That's what this election is about." Obama never spelled out the meaning of the term, but he didn't have to.

It's the rest of the public that remains in the dark, which is why we're launching this special educational series.

"Economic justice" simply means punishing the successful and redistributing their wealth by government fiat. It's a euphemism for socialism.

Obama's positioning himself with alarming stealth to put that rhetoric into action on a scale not seen since the birth of the welfare state.

Obama also talks about "restoring fairness to the economy," code for soaking the "rich" — a segment of society he fails to understand that includes mom-and-pop businesses filing individual tax returns.

It's clear from a close reading of his two books that he's a firm believer in class envy.

Tags: obama, "economic justice", wealth redictribution by government fiat, class envy, restoring fairness, "soaking the rich"

Hope + Change = 70% Tax Rate

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 08:09:27 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: Still, Barack assures us that John McCain's and George Bush's policy stances are indistinguishable, so let's so stipulate. Is that worse than the alternative?

After all, what President in the modern era does Senator Obama's agenda most resemble?

Huge expansion of the federal government? Check. Letting entitlement spending run wild? Check. "Windfall profit" taxes on oil companies? Strong desire to meet with dictators and state terrorism sponsors? Big doofy grin? Check, check, and check.

The Tax Man Cometh

Obama’s Plan

Since the early 1980s — after Americans rejected Jimmy Carter and embraced Ronald Reagan and his tax cuts — the United States has benefited from relatively competitive tax rates. But if Sen. Barack Obama’s tax plan becomes law, the IRS will become one of the most punitive tax men in the world.

http://blog.heritage.org/2008/07/01/morning-bell-the-tax-man-cometh/

(Obama caricature by Cox & Forkum)

Clip Source: www.suitablyflip.com

Obama’s Plan

Obama’s tax plan has two major components. First, he promises to end the Bush tax cuts, allowing the top two tax rates to return to 36 percent and 39.6 percent. Second, he promises to end the Social Security payroll tax cap for incomes above $250,000. Individuals making more than $250,000, therefore, would face a 15.65 percent tax rate from payroll taxes in addition to a top income tax rate of 39.6 percent for a combined tax rate topping 56 percent. Individuals living in cities or states with high taxes such as New York City or California would have tax rates approaching 70 percent, levels not seen since Carter was president.

Tags: obama, tax plan, end tax cuts, end payroll tax cap, incomes $250, 000+, irs

Conservatives At Odds With McCain

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 10:24:21 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: But perhaps more importantly, he has long been an advocate of entitlement reform. He was early an ardent support of personal accounts for Social Security, and has pushed for serious Medicare reform, including means-testing. Almost alone among Republicans, he opposed the disastrous Medicare prescription drug benefit.

"On domestic policy, he has shown a disturbing predilection for elevating every personal pet peeve, from steroids in baseball to airplane service quality, to a federal issue. And, he has embraced heavily regulatory environmental policies and compulsory national service. Like George W. Bush, he tends to support federal power over federalism, executive authority over legislative, and generally leans toward the imperial presidency. For believers in individual liberty and limited government, it's a decidedly mixed bag. But, then again, aren't they all?"

Clip Source: www.cato.org

"Conservative activists are preparing to do battle with allies of Sen. John McCain in advance of September's Republican National Convention, hoping to prevent his views on global warming, immigration, stem cell research and campaign finance from becoming enshrined in the party's official declaration of principles," The Washington Post reports. "McCain has not yet signaled the changes he plans to make in the GOP platform, but many conservatives say they fear wholesale revisions could emerge as candidate McCain seeks to put his stamp on a document that currently reflects the policies and principles of President Bush."

In the Cato-at-Liberty blog post "John McCain: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly," Cato senior fellow Michael Tanner writes: "While Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity sometimes portray McCain as a virtual clone of Ted Kennedy, the fact is that he is a true fiscal conservative. He is well known as an opponent of earmarks and pork barrel spending.

Tags: mccain, rnc, global warming, immigration, stem cell research, campaign finance, fiscal conservative, opponent of earmarks

McCain Promises to Balance Budget

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 12:11:11 GMT

clipped by: jano_cabrera

Clip Source: dyn.politico.com

McCain promises to balance budget
By: Mike Allen
July 7, 2008 05:38 AM EST

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) plans to promise on Monday that he will balance the federal budget by the end of his first term by curbing wasteful spending and overhauling entitlement programs, including Social Security, his advisers told Politico.

Jason Furman, Obama's economic policy director, called McCain's pledge “preposterous." Furman pointed out that the Congressional Budget Office now estimates a 2013 deficit of $443 billion, assuming the Bush tax cuts are extended. And he estimated that McCain would have to cut discretionary spending—including defense—by roughly one-third to bring the budget into the black by then.

"McCain would have to pay for all of his new tax cuts and other proposals and then, on top of that, cut an additional $443 billion from the budget—which is 81 percent of Medicare spending or 78 percent of all discretionary spending outside of defense," Furman said.

Tags: budget, deficit, obama, mccain, economy

Conservative cred.

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 07:56:51 GMT

clipped by: sillysam

Clip Source: www.politico.com

McCain promises to balance budget

By MIKE ALLEN | 7/6/08 10:41 PM EST

Text Size:

The vow to take on Social Security puts McCain in a political danger zone that thwarted President Bush after he named it the top domestic priority of his second term.

McCain is making the pledge at the beginning of a week when both presidential candidates plan to devote their events to the economy, the top issue in poll after poll as voters struggle to keep their jobs and fill their gas tanks.

CRISIS IN ENTITLEMENTS

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 05:17:21 GMT

clipped by: bbdevil08

Clip Source: www.examiner.com

The SAFE concept, championed by Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., and Rep. Jim Cooper, D-Tenn., is also supported by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who warns that mandated entitlement spending will only drive the federal deficit higher. Congress will soon have virtually no discretionary funds to spend, because entitlements already consume 60 percent of the federal budget and will explode as the baby boomers retire in coming years.

There is little encouragement on this issue from the presidential campaign. An analysis by the National Taxpayers Union found that the new programs proposed by Barack Obama would increase federal spending by $343.6 billion, while John McCains’ would push expenditures up by $68.5 billion.

NURISISMBERS ON ENTITLEMENT C

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 16:20:17 GMT

clipped by: bbdevil08

Clip Source: www.examiner.com

Entitlement Creep

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 21:37:22 GMT

clipped by: Victoria Barret
clipper's remarks: Forecasts for entitlement spending are eye-popping. If we don't want to mirror Europe's slow decline (people don't take jobs because the government pays more, for not working), we must stop this. Increasing taxes isn't the answer.

Clip Source: www.realclearpolitics.com

Last month, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analyzed the growth of government spending and deficits for Rep. Paul Ryan (R.-Wis.), ranking member of the Budget Committee. The report estimated that spending on Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, which in 2007 represented about 8 percent of GDP, would balloon to 14.5 percent in 2030 and 25.7 percent in 2082.

If you add in all other spending, including interest on the debt, federal spending under the CBO's scenario would eat up an astounding 75.4 percent of GDP in 2084.

And if taxes were to keep pace? The CBO says, "[T]ax rates would have to more than double."

Tags: entitlements, spending

Give me a break

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 20:23:49 GMT

clipped by: sillysam

Clip Source: townhall.com

Congress is spending us into a hole. We hear about the cost of earmarks and the Iraq war. But what about "entitlements"?

That's the government's ironic term for programs that transfer money from people who earned it to people who didn't.

Entitlement? How can you be entitled to someone else's money?

To finance "entitlement" programs, the government threatens force against the taxpayers who provide the money. Why are people who favor compulsion called humanitarians, while those who favor freedom are stigmatized as greedy?

pending on Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, which in 2007 represented about 8 percent of GDP, would balloon to 14.5 percent in 2030 and 25.7 percent in 2082.

If you add in all other spending, including interest on the debt, federal spending under the CBO's scenario would eat up an astounding 75.4 percent of GDP in 2084.

And if taxes were to keep pace? The CBO says, "[T]ax rates would have to more than double."

Veterans’ Groups Pushs For More Predictable VA Funding

Tue, 20 May 2008 06:55:28 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: “It is a lot cheaper to provide veteran care through the VA than it is to provide it by Medicare or Medicaid,” said Violante. “If we put the resources into the VA it would certainly be fiscally responsible.”

Congress now appropriates VA medical care funds on an annual basis. Political squabbling has delayed VA funding in 13 of the past 14 years — something that has severely hampered the department’s ability to plan and manage its healthcare system, according to DAV’s talking points.

Veterans’ groups say the change would ensure the agency can better handle the growing number of veterans dependent on it for medical care.

An added benefit would be that advance appropriations would not fall under pay-as-you-go budgetary rules, which do cover mandatory funding. This means the advance appropriations would not have to be offset by spending cuts or revenue raisers, requirements that make it harder to move legislation.

Clip Source: hill6.thehill.com

While more political attention has been paid to a possible expansion of education benefits for returning soldiers under a new GI bill, some veterans’ groups are highlighting the need to improve VA’s funding.

The Disabled American Veterans (DAV) is leading a coalition of groups that are pressing lawmakers to approve advance appropriations for medical care as part of the VA’s budget. This would give the VA much more certainty over its funding, as it would know its budget a year in advance. For example, funding for 2010 would have to be approved this year.

The change would mean that “veterans would no longer be used as a political football,” said Joe Violante, DAV’s national legislative director.

Sens. Barack Obama (Ill.) and Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.), have both been supporters of mandatory funding for the VA. The Republican contender, Sen. John McCain (Ariz.), does not support mandatory funding. McCain, who touts himself as a fiscal hawk, would not want to add to entitlement spending

Tags: disabled american veterans, american legion, vfw, paralyzed veterans of america, blinded veterans association, new gi bill, fiscally responsible

Battle Of the Proxy Incumbents

Sun, 11 May 2008 09:23:56 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: Fiction can be fun! Ultimately though, this fanciful bit of twaddle is unlikely to stick, what with McCain's voting record so thoroughly refuting it. And in a lot of ways, that's too bad. If only we could look back at McCain's votes and comments on the wildly effective investment income tax cuts and find a man who embraced pro-growth fiscal policy as eagerly as Bush, we might be better assured of the continuity of certain beneficial policies that Obama so laments.

Clip Source: www.suitablyflip.com

In case your cable's been out for a couple weeks, the grand, unifying, post-partisan argument in favor of electing this New Kind of Politician is that John McCain, the "Maverick", the Gang of 14er, the pathologically centrist aisle-crosser and frequent thorn in his own party's side, represents George Bush's third term.

Still, Barack assures us that John McCain's and George Bush's policy stances are indistinguishable, so let's so stipulate. Is that worse than the alternative?

After all, what President in the modern era does Senator Obama's agenda most resemble?

Huge expansion of the federal government? Check. Letting entitlement spending run wild? Check. "Windfall profit" taxes on oil companies? Check. Big doofy grin? Check.

Do political fashions run in 30-year cycles? If so, then get ready for the fabulous comeback of energy crises, stagflation, high unemployment, and national malaise.

(Obama caricature by Cox & Forkum)

Tags: mccain, obama, huge government expansion, entitlement spending, oil company taxes, stagflation, high unemployment

No more PR spam

Fri, 09 May 2008 23:32:45 GMT

clipped by: communicatrix
clipper's remarks: The clip is from a comment by Merlin Mann, but overall the comments--and post--are great. As Brian Oberkirch pointed out on Twitter, from the small amount that reaches (and annoys) me, a nothingblogger, I cannot imagine what the big boys have to put up with.

Once again, a bunch of idiots ruin everything for a few smart, nice people who Get It.

Clip Source: a.wholelottanothing.org

I still find it extraordinary that PR folks have such a ballsy sense of entitlement about “reaching out” to one-person publishers and indie bloggers — it’s this ridiculous kabuki where they pretend like they’re performing some kind of essential public service. Well, it’s not a service (it’s a *paid nuisance*), and I’m tired of being expected to pretend that it is anything but white collar spam simply because my email address can be easily guessed and you happen to know my first name.

The people who _pay_ the more rodent-like PR people need to know what’s being done in their name and how it’s likely to affect their hard-fought reputation. It’s crummy and unprofessional work, and, if it’s not clear, I’m sick of spending hours a week politely asking people to knock it off.

Tags: spam, pr, public relations, blogging

Comprehensive Economic Revitalization Plan

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:12:37 GMT

clipped by: sahara
clipper's remarks: Here are a few of the plan's basics:
Eliminate Taxes on Social Security Benefits. That money belongs to seniors, not the government. They paid into the system for a lifetime, and they should be free to spend every penny as they see fit.
* Pass H.R. 192 to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the 1993 increase in taxes on Social Security benefits.
# Eliminate Taxes on Tips.The single parents and working students who earn their income chiefly through tips deserve to keep all of their money. This tax on "estimated income" is unfair and should be ended.
* Pass H.R. 3664 to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide that tips shall not be subject to income or employment taxes.
Reduce Overseas Military Commitments. Our bases and troops should be on our soil.
* It's time to stop subsidizing our trading partners in Europe, Japan and South Korea.

Clip Source: www.ronpaul2008.com

America became the greatest, most prosperous nation in human history through low taxes, constitutionally limited government, personal freedom and a belief in sound money. We need to return to these principles so our economy can thrive again. When enacted, my plan will provide both short-term stimulus and lay the groundwork for long-term prosperity.

The Four-Point Plan

Tax Reform: Reduce the tax burden and eliminate taxes that punish investment and savings, including job-killing corporate taxes.

Spending Reform: Eliminate wasteful spending. Reduce overseas commitments. Freeze all non-defense, non-entitlement spending at current levels.

Monetary Policy Reform: Expand openness at the Federal Reserve and require the Fed to televise its meetings. Return value to our money.

Regulatory Reform: Repeal Sarbanes/Oxley regulations that push companies to seek capital outside of US markets. Stop restricting community banks from fostering local economic growth.

Tags: economy, politics

I'll Cut Deficits Like Reagan (Who Tripled The Deficit)

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 16:31:22 GMT

clipped by: lifecyce1898
clipper's remarks: 100 years of war and spending with tax cuts like Regan. If Bin Laden is your #1 fear your not paying attention

Clip Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

"When Senator John McCain was asked here this afternoon how he plans to balance the budget, he said that he hoped to do so by stimulating economic growth - and approvingly cited the example of President Ronald Reagan," the New York Times reports.

"There was one thing he did not mention during his response: the deficit nearly tripled during the Reagan presidency, partly due to tax cuts and increases in military spending."

"Basically, which is it?" the man asked Mr. McCain. "Straight talk: Do you want to raise taxes, cut entitlement spending, cut defense spending, or have a deficit?"

Mr. McCain did not explain how he plans to balance the budget, but spoke generally about hoping to stimulate the economy - and cited President Reagan.