Each month I await Victor Reilly's latest missive denouncing Republicans, who he believes are responsible for every misfortune to have befallen us -- their latest trick, apparently, "starving the beast" getting us where we are today (Feb. 12).
This is a term used to describe cutting taxes so as to deprive the federal government (Republican or Democratic) of funds through budget shortfalls, thereby forcing a reduction in the size and number of services offered by government. It has been around since 1985 and was supported by Reagan/Bush as well as economist Milton Friedman, columnist George Will and others.
Proponents believe big government and further expansion of its power is bad. Witness the resistance to President Obama's health-care reform now stalled in Congress, and growth of protest movements because of increased government budget deficits and intrusion in our personal lives. Obviously a lot of others agree.
Many believe Obama is advocating a Democratic version of this policy by his proposed social-program spending commitments (universal health care, universal pre-K, green programs, etc.), further increasing deficits, but pushing payment onto future generations without reducing government services ("feeding the beast"). The plan is to hook you on the benefits now so it becomes easier to rationalize pushing off the fiscal responsibility (paying for it) until later.
Robert Reich, an Obama economic advisor and former secretary of labor under President Clinton, believes the Reagan policy of tax cuts and deficit spending actually constrained the Clinton administration from more liberal spending, so maybe it works!
We have had a Democratically controlled Congress for years, now a Democratic president -- yet I've seen, not progress on the changes promised, but a grass-roots resistance to their arrogance evidenced by recent elections.
Both parties bear responsibility. Perhaps the real answer is both parties setting aside their personal agendas and working together toward fiscally responsible budgets with less government for the American people. Then again, that might be asking too much from this Congress and president!
Jack Burke
Aiken, S.C.
By all means, starve the beast. Reduce your with holding rate to claim your deductions every week. Don't allow the fed to use your money all year long.
Starve the beast: Go on strike. The Government depends on us being good little lemmings and not organizing as a group. Together, taxpayers can go on strike and bring Government to it's knees. When the Convicts in Washington DC can't get to their hometowns because there is no air service, when the POTUS (MHSTE) can't get to his golf game because there are no workers at the course, they will pay attention to the will of the people.
Obama and Congress have no repercussions to face for ignoring the will of the people except not being re-elected. Yeah, like that will really put them in the poor house right. Let's face it, once elected to Congress, these thieves are set for life.
Starve the beast: no pensions for Congresspeople.
Starve the beast: no pensions for POTUS
Starve the beast: no spending money that we don't have as a nation.
Starve the beast: your children and grandchildren will thank you.
Starve the beast: Get every penny you can legally extract from the Government. Entitlement recipients do this as a way of life, why cannot taxpayers learn from them?
YES! Right on Mr. Burke! More Gov = Bad! Starve the beast, by all means! The irony here is that the Dems themselves voted the "Paygo" policy, which demands that all future legislation must have the funds already in place to be passed. Guess what? They have voted every time to exempt bills from their own rule. That is why Sen. Bunning took such a beating in the press, for trying to make them stick to their own rules. SO, imho, lets all starve the beast into total gridlock, and by doing so, limit the damage to our future way of life for us and our children.
There is bipartisanship every day in congress. It has to do with the benefits and bonuses they claim for each other. Life time retirement plans that pay as a result of a term in office. Inside connections that allow them to work as "lobbyists" upon being voted out of office. High paying and influential jobs for their family and beholding "friends" in the bureaucracy and the courts. There's a lot of ugly in D.C., and it's not just in one party. The control of the press by the left makes this difficult to understand, except for those willing to do the necessary research to learn what's been happening. Removing the self serving people from congress is a tough hill to climb. It won't happen in one election cycle.
Excellent article Mr. Burke. Oh, how I wish that we could see the two sides come together and understand that big government does more to hurt than help the people. Personal responsibility is what is needed in our lives rather than depending on the government. That is one reason I advocate faith based and social based local agencies to help people in their time of need. Local people and churches know when people are in real need rather than just too lazy to work. I work and provide for my family including the high cost of health care and I don't ask the government to do anything but keep things legal and stay out of the way. Until both democrats and republicans realize that they work for us and not themselves we will never have the two sides get along or agree on anything. I think there are some fundamental policies that we may never agree on but there are a lot we do. If we instituted term limits, pay as you go and a fair-tax and/or a flat tax just think of how many problems could be solved. Right now everybody is just trying to score political points. The will of the people has made it very clear that we do not want this socialized health care and Obama wants to ram down our throats regardless just so he can say he accomplished something. This is one battle we have to win!
Actually, Jack, it's the Republicans who refuse to work with the President. I don't know who you think the government is here to serve, but I believe it's "We the People." Despite what the Supreme Court says, I don't think the Founders meant corporations.
"We the people" have repeatably demonstrated our rejection of the current HC bill before Congress. How about Obama serving our needs by focusing on jobs instead?
Here is why the Republicans are not cooperating with Obama. News flash: this AM a democrat, Durban, admits that under Obamacare the 85% of us that have good healthcare insurance will be paying even higher premiums and higher taxes. This AM: Time Magazine reports that our deficit will require tax rates to double in the next ten years. That is double above and beyond the tax increase that Obamacare will cost us in new taxes. You had better wake up folks and tell your congressman to vote no on Obamacare and to stop the crazy spending. Hyper-inflation and 60%-70% income tax rates are just down the road and we are speeding at them like an out of control Toyota. The brakes are smoking but nothing seems to slow them down. Yes, both parties are to blame for getting us to this point, but the spending of this administration and the taxes that will result (on the next administration's watch) are just absolutely insane. Call you congressional representative's office today and every day until they get the message. If they don't, then put them out in November regardless of party.
Bush got the ball rolling with his out of control spending. He gave Homeland Security a blank check. Bush had 9/11 too deal with but that does not excuse his out of control spending. But Bush didn’t even come close the idiots we now have running the federal government. None have a clue; you have a community organizer as president and a complete idiot as speaker of the house. I guess a lot of people are being a little easy on Hussein after all he has never run anything except community organizing so maybe he can learn. He does seen too be a little bright after all he reads a teleprompter very well.
Support reform. The insurance companies are well aware that without the government bringing in 30 million new purchasers that the current system will collapse on itself as private payers withdraw because of expense,leaving insufficient funds to pay claims in group policies.Without reform they will go bankrupt and the government will step in with a Public Option---except there will be few private options!. The pundits need to stop referring to Healthcare Reform as an entitlement -- as if the government will pay everything. Everyone will bear the burden and the privilege of coverage since all but the poorest will be paying in. These rate hikes by the insurance companies are like the orchestra playing on the Titanic. They're getting it while they can!...
bigalsc, your words are deluded sir. All that is needed to stop the rate hikes, is a simple repeal of the law that created this mess in the first place, and let insurance companies compete across state lines. That aside, this really is not about health care at all. It is about massive expansion of our federal government, and giving unprecedented new powers to the IRS, to implement hundreds of new taxes, so that the government can then control even more aspects of our everyday lives. Not to mention the incredible burden placed on future generations, to try and pay for this disaster. I do like your comparison to the titanic though, only lets call it the ship of our American freedoms, hitting the iceberg called health care reform.
Yes and we will need some reforms but not this take over of one sixth of our economy by the government. We can do this a better way as Federalist suggested
. The pundits need to stop referring to Healthcare Reform as an entitlement -- as if the government will pay everything.
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Obamacare establishes subsidies to any family living at up to 400% of poverty level. That's an entitlement solely to gain control of the middle class.
Why do people making 400% of poverty level need tax dollars for anything?
110 new federal agencies, if obamacare passes. quite a "stimulus bill"
Fact: Manufacturing jobs lost in 2009= over 800,000
Fact: Construction jobs lost in 2009= over 800,000
Fact: Government jobs gained in 2009= over 113,000
It appears Boy King Barry's job creation plan is to get everyone working for the Government or living off the Government.
This is America???
Of the 1.6 MILLION jobs lost in construction and manufacturing, guess which segment of society was hit hardest?
Yup, white males. The only unprotected minority in the USA. Yes, minority, for white women outnumber white males.
Where are all the white male organizations, screaming in the press for equality? Where are all the NAAWP etc standing up for us?
Where are they? Out looking for work to feed their families and stay off the Government dole. No time to whine, no one is going to listen to the plight of the American White Male, all because we're supposedly "favored" or "preferred". Grossen Bullschiezen.
I just (within the last 2 minutes) got the most disturbing robo-call:
"This is an important message about your mortgage. President Obama has ordered mortgage companies to make your payment more affordable. Press 1 if you're behind on your mortgage."
Now, I'm not stupid enough to believe this claim, what makes it so disturbing is the fact that so many people are out there who will.
oh yes, I just know that if we trust Obama that he will send me a big fat check in the mail and who cares about paying my mortgage. Obama said not to worry about it! NOT!
Did you know that only once in my life did the government send some of my money back without filing for it. I believe it was under a republican president by the name of Bush! LOL
Remember, how they used to say if the republicans got control they would cut your Social Security. Never did that happen but guess what Obama did this past year. He cut out the yearly cost of living increase which is like a deduction from our Social Security. The Democrats and liberal for years claimed that republicans were just mean spirit people who wanted to give all the money to the rich and cut your social security. Now, we have seen the enemy and it looks a lot like Democrats and Obama. Everything they warned the republicans would do they have done on a grander scale.
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