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It was almost a year ago that I was turned on to Governor Mike Huckabee. It was at the 2nd GOP Debate. The first one was on MSNBC (which I don't get) a few days earlier at the Ronald Reagan Library. this one was on Fox News. The debate was held in Columbia South Carolina. I was very interested in the debate because it would be my first chance to see and hear from the crop of candidates. The other reason I was interested was there was to be a huge FairTax rally at the University of South Carolina that day in the hours prior to the debate. Three of the candidates addressed the rally, Tom Tancredo, Duncan Hunter, and Mike Huckabee. In fact that rally ended up being a huge story. There were many groups demonstrating for candidates or causes but the FairTax group was the largest and loudest as they marched through the streets of Columbia!
It was Mike Huckabee that stood out as the biggest advocate for the movement (because he took the chance to push it during the debate). As he would do time and time again in the months to come Mike shined bright during this debate and delivered the line of the nigh after talking about the FairTax
I was sitting at my computer multitasking...as the earlier potions of the debate were somewhat boring. However my ears pricked up at the mention of the FairTax and I began applauding. then I started laughing really loud as Mike delivered his zinger:
This is one of those moments in time that has the potential to stand out depending on what happens in the future. This was Mike's first time before a huge audience of viewers. He received a lot of praise from the pundits afterwards. In fact it helped Huckabee survive to the Iowa Straw poll. I rememeber going to Mike's site a few days afterwards and he was raising money by asking supporters to donate what they would usually spend on a haircut with the donations being registered on a barber pole. It was small potatoes but it was still enough to keep Mike on his feet.
In the joke above, Mike was referring to John Edwards and his $400 trips to the beauty shop. Fast foward to the fall of 2007. Huck was traveling through New Hampshire. I heard rumblings that he had a similar procedure done and I was shoceked. However when I heard the details I was touched beyond belief and assured I had chosen the right man. A barber in Concord, NH was raising money for Autism research. At a time when his campaign coffers had more dust than actual money, Governor Huckabee took at his wallet and wrote a $400 check for the cause. He could have used the money to help his campaign. Instead he selflessly thought of others and their plight. I was sure I had picked the right candidate to support, but this act clinched it for me.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
VIDEO - "We Have A Congress that Spent Money Like John Edwards At The Beauty Shop!"
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3 comments:
Wouldn't it have been much better for you if you had not been multi-tasking but, instead checking the Huckster's background?
The purpose of listening to any politician is to hear what they're offering today and compare it with who they actually are and what their records show;
Mike "The Huckster" Huckabee
http://mikeyhuckabee.blogspot.com/
Mike Huckabee's Skeleton Closet
http://www.realchange.org/huckabee.htm
It is also more than merely important that you research the issues so that you are not merely listening to clowns about pipedreams that can't be made into law;
The Fair tax was dreamed up by economists which means it has no thought to what can be implemented into action...reality;
Flat vs. Fair Tax Plans Which is better? ( When page opens click on the words “Flat v. Fair” and the video clip will start. )
http://tinyurl.com/28tvtx
The Huckster’s Fair Tax, Flawed Tax
http://www.opinionjournal.com/extra/?id=110010523
It is the responsibility of every single citizen to not just listen to people talk but, actually check their stories and find out what the truth is to be capable of our own governance...BE responsible for your part.
First of all I know you have been reading this blog for awhile. Thanks for stopping by. Even if you disagree with me I appreciate you dropping by.
Don't get me wrong at all. Even after that debate I had not made my decision as of yet. There were too many candidates at that point for me to fairly do so. Furthermore I did not tell you what I was doing while watching. I was looking up information about these candidates. I wasn't just doing something trivial like checking E-mil or playing a game. I was doing my "homework" so to speak. I didn't come to a decision on a candidate until almost August. I took a lot of time and care into that decision. I don't just listen to what they have to say without looking things up.
Supporting the FairTax was important for me on who to support. However there were other candidates that did so. I was looking for someone who could be a great communicator, like Reagan. I was also looking for someone who stands for what he believes in and doesn't just change his views based on the political winds. I disagree with Mike om on social issues but I found that he stood on those principles and would never waiver for any purpose. We've had over 15 years of a President who told us what we wanted to hear (depending on his audience), and then did what he wanted to (Clinton) and a ignoramus who can't speak intelligently to save his life (George W. Bush). Is Huckabee completely honest and trustworthy? No. He's a politician for goodness sakes. However I saw him as the most honest and trustworthy of anyone on either side.
As far as Fair Tax vs Flat Tax that is worth an actual posted response and I will begin writing that one a little later.
The government can only tax us in one of two ways- our earnings or our spending. Taxing earnings is a direct violation of our property rights. It totally conflicts with the principles our Constitution was found on. Taxing trade is much fairer because it doesn’t violate our property rights and it gives us some control over how much we pay.
The problem with broad trade taxes (like the APT tax) is that they cascade through all production pipelines. They compound upon themselves and add a lot of hidden costs to the prices of all goods and services. Consumers ultimately pay for all taxes on business and production so, it would be far more honest and transparent to just add the tax all at once at the point of sale- a sales taxes.
Sales taxes are flat taxes and flat taxes are inherently regressive because they burden the poor more than anyone else. To make a flat tax progressive it is necessary to refund the tax for everyone up to the poverty level. The easiest way to do this is by issuing a prebate.
When we combine a sales tax with a prebate, we get the fair tax. That’s why they call it the ‘fair’ tax. It is by far the fairest one of all.
The fair tax isn’t just a sales tax. It’s a “pre-sales” tax that replaces all the hidden costs of income taxes in consumer prices. The fair tax is meant to be included in net prices, not added on at the register like a state sales tax. Prices need not change. The tax is still embedded but everyone can clearly see exactly how much they are paying. State sales taxes will be applied as usual so that state revenues don’t change.
The fair tax only applies to new retail goods, not used items or stuff you've grown or made at home.
The level of evasion would be low because it would be all risk, no reward for legitimate state-licensed retailers. But retailers would get 1/4 of 1% of the sales taxes they collect and remit as an administrative reward. The same goes for state governments.
Since the amount of tax a person pays under the fair tax depends on how much they spend, and the amount of the prebate depends on how much they earn and how many dependents they have, there is no way to determine how much anyone is going to save or loose. Studies and reports that make claims about savings and losses are based on totally arbitrary assumptions.
However, it doesn't take a Ph.D to see that the fair tax doesn’t just shift the federal tax burden from incomes to sales, it shifts the priorities of Congress. With an income tax system, it’s easier to tax wages than it is to haggle with millions of small business owners, especially when they don’t approve. That’s why Congress has supported monopolistic policies and anticompetitive practices that are aimed at keeping most people employed rather than selfemployed. Under the fair tax, these same policies and practices will hurt Congressional revenue as much as they hurt our personal revenues. Congress will want to repeal these policies in order to allow the retail tax base to expand which means more opportunities for people to employ themselves.
Not only that, the elimination of the income tax system would bring trillions of investment dollars and thousands of manufacturing jobs back to America. Trillions more will follow as foreign companies move their jobs here. Talk about job creation! A huge increases in the jobs market coupled with a decrease in labor means people could see increases in wages. We could also see more foreign workers moving here which would increase domestic sales. Over time, Americas large trade deficit will be replaced with a large trade surplus.
Many other good things would happen, I’ve barely scratched the surface. Honestly, anyone who doesn’t support the fair tax either hasn’t thought it through or has a vested interest in the inequalities of an unfair tax system.
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