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Ear to the Ground

Sprinkling the Poor, Showering the Rich

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Posted on Jul 29, 2006
Hilton sisters
From images.blackeyedpeas.com

House Republicans tacked a cut in estate taxes onto a bill to raise the minimum wage. Yeah, you read that correctly: The economically distressed would get an additional $2.10 an hour, whereas the Walton kids and the Hilton sisters would get untold millions.

Must be that compassionate conservatism we’ve heard so much about.

AP:

Republicans muscled the first minimum wage increase in a decade through the House early Saturday after pairing it with a cut in inheritance taxes on multimillion-dollar estates.

Combining the two issues provoked protests from Democrats and was sure to cause problems in the Senate, where the minimum wage initiative was likely to die at the hands of Democrats opposed to the costly estate tax cuts. The Senate is expected to take up the legislation next week.

Still, GOP leaders saw combining the wage and tax issues as their best chance for getting permanent cuts to the estate tax, a top GOP priority fueled by intense lobbying by farmers, small business owners and super-wealthy families such as the Waltons, heirs to the Wal-Mart fortune.

“This is the best shot we’ve got; we’re going to take it,” said House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio). The unusual packaging also soothed conservatives angry about raising the minimum wage over opposition by GOP business allies.

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By Maka Fairman, September 3, 2006 at 11:17 am #
(Unregistered commenter)

I’M MAD AS HELL, AND I’M NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANYMORE!

The last time my husband and I voted right here in Alaska, our votes didn’t get counted. I know this because unbeknownst to us, the wrong address was on our names in the register, and there was no time to change it before voting deadline. How could that happen? Our address has been the same for over fifteen years! It’s never been wrong before when we voted, why now?

Why vote at all anymore? We all know there’s been a failure in the machines count, yet no one seems to know what to do about it. The best thing to do is just not show up to vote. If no one votes, the Republicans would certainly win again, but they will win again anyway, one way or another. They win through deceptive measures like the machines, appointments, grant writers, earmarks, propaganda, etc.. If any of us try these measures we are called traitors, cowards, unpatriotic, and terrorists. Who are these people who care naught for life and liberty?

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By Brady, July 30, 2006 at 10:16 am #
(Unregistered commenter)

Politics as usual. Here comes inflation.

Show me just ONE politician who claims to have an agenda for the people and good of the United States, and I will show you a liar.

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By Shaner, July 30, 2006 at 10:06 am #
(Unregistered commenter)

Why does the gap get bigger? Because this is America… When you get a raise, you are helping stretch that gap. Should you refuse the raise? Nope. The reason the gap between the rich and poor is widening is because more and more people are doing better. Yet, the poor will always be poor—basically, they are at the floor while the rest of us raise the roof. Period.

While I believe that if we are to have a min wage, it should be increased every year with inflation (it should be near $9 today), I understand the dislike of the inheritance tax.

It’s simple. This is money that was already taxed. Just because someone dies, does that make it OK for the gov. to come in and take more.... after they already taxed it once? I am sorry that you want to grab $ from Paris Hilton and are jealous of her. But this really is nothing more than government (and jealous people) wanting to come in and take money AGAIN just because someone dies. I understand that most only want to do this to the “rich”.... but it really isn’t fair, period. If you want to tax this money… do it. When it’s earned. If that’s not enough, raise taxes, don’t tax the dead. That’s dumb.

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By Dave Raithel, July 30, 2006 at 7:18 am #
(Unregistered commenter)

I doubt that the Republican house leadership had any intention of trading more tax cuts in exchange for raising the minimum wage. The purpose is to give Republican candidates for congress the opportunity to claim that they voted for a raise in the minimum wage, but that Democrats in the Senate quashed the effort. This is the Republican standard, the practice of cynics, liars, and thieves.

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By Richard, July 29, 2006 at 7:54 pm #
(Unregistered commenter)

it’; Is very nice to understand that the rich is rich and the poor understand to stay poor.
also is nice to understand that they was very poor
worker that became very rich.it nice to remmber ah!

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By Aly J. Eychaner, July 29, 2006 at 1:38 pm #
(Unregistered commenter)

Why we all sit back and watch the poor get poorer and the rich get richer is beyond me?!?! Is it not enough that they already get massive tax breaks and now lets keep them from paying more to a country that is letting its idiotic president expand the deficit as he is and has been doing so since he was SELECTED not voted in?!?

Absolutely Digusting....

Stand up America!

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