President Obama's Weekly Address - March 2, 2013

Congress Must Compromise to Stop the Impact of the Sequester

As Long As It's Not a Tax...

POSTED BY JHW22

A school district in Texas, ranked high for managing their money well and getting a strong return on investment, had to go to residents for a property tax increase vote last month. The increase in the ISD portion of the property tax would have been the equivalent of a bag of Lay's chips a week and would NOT have affected residents 65 or older (who only made up 4% of the population in 2000). Despite all the evidence that the ISD does manage its money well, "The Keller school district is one of the best in the state at achieving cost-effective academic success, according to a report released Wednesday", the prevailing talking point was "they mismanage money so don't deserve any more". Sure, the ISD had some frivolous expenses that could have been cut. But even all the frivolous cuts added up wouldn't have saved the budget. Considering the entire state (minus a few ISDs) is facing school budget cuts, blaming any single ISD for mismanagement is a bit lame. When the evidence shows the opposite, it's not just lame, it's moronic.

Aside from teacher layoffs, program cuts and summer school cancellation, buses were cut.

Now parents have to pay for their kids to ride a bus.

NOW parents are demanding sidewalks be built.

Keller has been booming, in part because Texas is a popular business state. People move to Texas for jobs. They choose towns like Keller because of their high ranking. Because of that, the district grew by 36% between 2000 and 2006. The population increased 45% between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, the under-18 population was 33.7%. The average household size is 3.41, which means an average of more than one child per household.

The homeowner rate is around 90%, the median mortgage is $2268, the median home value is $173,000. The median household income is $115,723. The property tax rate for the ISD is $1.53/$100. That means property taxes going to the ISD on a median priced home is a total of $2647/year.

It costs the ISD $6,204 to educate each child. Their target revenue per student is $5,200 -- one of the lowest in the area.

So a school district that educates kids at a high return on investment, as determine by the Republican state comptroller, lost a vote to raise property taxes in an amount equivalent to a bag of chips a week.

The increase would have been $260/year for a $200,000 house (above the median) but starting the next school year it will cost

$185 per semester to ride the bus to school. Additional students will cost a family an additional $135 per student per semester.

Economically disadvantaged parents will pay $100 per child per semester to ride the bus.

With two semesters in a year, riding the bus will cost $370 for one child. Since the average household is 3.41, the average family will pay more like $640.

Even the $200 per year, per child, for poor kids is woefully unfair. A family who rents and pays their landlord's property tax in their rent, would not have seen a dent had property taxes gone up. But now THEY have to find $200 or more a year just to get to school.

And now they want the city to build sidewalks. Do they think sidewalks are free to build? In this "Taxed Enough Already" climate, people get so stuck on the word "taxes", that they completely miss the consequential costs of not paying taxes.

President Obama's Weekly Address - April 9, 2011

President Obama on the Budget Compromise to Avoid a Government Shutdown

Who Wants To Shut The Government Down?!

Over the last few days, I've posted a couple of examples of Republicans on record threatening to shut down the government if all their budget cut demands aren't met. The GOP, or rather the Tea Party faction of the GOP, wanted $100 billion in cuts to the budget already in place. The Democrats countered with $10 billion. Both bills were rejected in lieu of a more serious discussion. The GOP originally wanted about $32 billion in cuts, and the Tea Party insisted on at least $61 billion. The Democrats met Speaker John Boehner to agree on $33 billion, $1 billion more than the original GOP proposal. Boehner was immediately spanked by the Tea Party and rejected what he had initially agreed to, countering this time with $40 billion in cuts. If the Democrats agree to $40 billion, Boehner and the Tea Party Republicans would reject it and demand yet another number.

Why is this? Why does the GOP, who's collective nutsack is in a Tea Party vise, keep moving the goal posts? Why does Boehner agree to a number, then come back with his tail between his legs and renege on the agreement? It's because they really don't want to negotiate. They don't want a compromise, they want a shutdown because they think it's in their political best interests. It also shows Boehner is no leader.

Here's Rachel Maddow and Melissa Harris-Perry on the shutdown and Rep. Paul Ryan's $1 trillion Medicare cut idea.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

GOP: $4 Trillion in Cuts

It's so simple to step on the necks of the downtrodden, isn't it?

Republicans will present this week a 2012 budget proposal that would cut more than $4 trillion from federal spending projected over the next decade and transform the Medicare health program for the elderly, a move that will dramatically reshape the budget debate in Washington.

...The plan would essentially end Medicare, which now pays most of the health-care bills for 48 million elderly and disabled Americans, as a program that directly pays those bills. Mr. Ryan and other conservatives say this is necessary because of the program's soaring costs.

Okay, can we now talk about something realistic because this is an obvious ploy, a joke. And yet, the Republican Party continues to be taken seriously somehow. I'll be waiting for the Tea Party to take the streets in droves chanting, "Keep your government hands of my Medicare!" Let's see them protest even the idea of considering Paul Ryan's "fuck you" to the poor and elderly.

And by the way, this is just a number that they put out there. There is nothing in the plan on how to get to this number without literally killing hundreds of thousands of people by denying them financial assistance with their day to day lives in terms of medical care. Remember "Repeal and Replace"? Whatever happened to that?

ADDING... Of course, they can't just say they're going to cut spending. They're going to cut taxes too!

Conservative activists who are familiar with the Ryan plan said they expect it to call for a fundamental overhaul of the tax system, with a 25% top rate for both individuals and corporations, compared to the current 35% top rate. It is expected to raise about the same amount of money as the current system, however. Lawmakers already are considering ways to accomplish that by reducing or eliminating some deductions and other tax breaks.

Cutting the top tax rate by 10% but bringing in the same amount as the current system? So you know what that last line actually means. Those of us "individuals" who actually pay 35% currently but are able to itemize some deductions and get a refund can kiss that goodbye. But corporations that currently pay LITTLE TO NO TAXES because of loopholes at a 35% rate, can continue to rape the US economy at the 25% rate. And those who are in lower tax brackets will probably wind up paying the same or maybe even a bit more. But that doesn't matter to the GOP - they know that the working class poor don't have a real voice in Washington, so who's going to know?

President Obama's Weekly Address - February 12, 2011

"It's Time Washington Acted as Responsibly as Our Families Do"

Rand Paul Plays on the Third Rail

Paul defended his call to end to all foreign aid -- including the $3 billion the U.S. gives to Israel every year.

"I'm not singling out Israel. I support Israel. I want to be known as a friend of Israel," Paul said, "but not with money you don't have. We can't just borrow from our kids' future and give it to countries even if they are our friends."

..."I think they're an important ally, but I also think that their per capita income is greater than probably three-fourths of the rest of the world," Paul said. "Should we be giving free money or welfare to a wealthy nation? I don't think so."

Welfare? *Sigh.*

While I'm willing to praise Rand Paul for his bluntness on Israel (seems like more politicians should be worried bout the well being of the US before Israel - I'm looking at you, Joe Lieberman) he's going after them for the wrong reasons. It isn't purely a financial issue - although it probably is for Paul, who also wants to cut the Department of Education by 83%.

Why I Chose Correctly On November 4th

I am so glad John McCain is still a Senator and not a President. Here's a "tweet" I just received.

Here's my response.



This is just a reminder for those of you who don't remember the old curmudgeon yelling at kids to get off his lawn.