“The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small,but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified.” – President Obama, Inauguration (2009)
Hmmm, is it the case that I only have about 2 months left to be able to use the above? Or is it an evergreen statement that’s a great opener for “Political Parties / Govt malfeasance” posts? Need to noodle upon this for a bit. Anyways, this is about the Republicans in the US House, just after a YUGE Presidential win based on a “Drain the Swamp” promise, making that swamp deeper and wider.
Yep – created a new tax and made government bigger. Tell me again: why we should vote Republican, why we should Trust them, and how are they different than the Democrats? (emphasis mine, reformatted):
Monday night, the Republican-controlled House voted in favor of a tax on concrete to placate special interests in Washington D.C.
Provided yet another opportunity to expand the size and scope of government, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed H.R. 985, (here) the Concrete Masonry Products, Research, Education, and Promotion Act of 2015, a tax in all but name.
The bill, introduced by Rep. Brett Guthrie, R-Ky. (F, 45%), would create a Concrete Masonry Products Board composed of 15-25 members appointed by the Department of Commerce after a referendum approval by producers of concrete masonry products. This board will have the power to establish, finance, and carry out a “coordinated research and education program,” ostensibly to “promote masonry products in the domestic market,” according to a legislative bulletin email from the Republican Study Committee. This program will be paid for by a “federally administered assessment.”
An “assessment,” in case you were not aware, is Washington-speak for a “tax” — in this case, a tax on concrete.
Republicans: so much of being for Free Markets, right? So much for shrinking government, eh? So much for enhancing competition? So much for getting government out of the private sector? So much for decreasing the ability to rent-seek?
So tell me again – why did these manufacturers believe they need the government’s thumb on the scale?
And yes, NH’s US Republican Congressman Frank Guinta voted for it (Annie McCluster skipped out on the vote). There’s a reason why Conservatives hate lame duck sessions.
(H/T: Conservative Review)
