Election Integrity, Open House Jan 2nd & Tax Deal in Congress

Before we get on to some of the holiday mischief that the Congress and President Obama are making, let me update you on some Election Day news.

Election Integrity

On election day in November you may recall that a number of problems arose throughout the state and in our area.  One issue was the failure of Secretary of State Robin Carnahan to keep the statewide voter database running.  This failure plagued election workers throughout our state.  With the voter database inoperable for most of the day election workers were unable to check the eligibility of many citizens to vote.  When this happened, citizens report being asked to cast provisional ballots or being denied the right to vote.  This is a terrible failure and strikes at the heart of our election process. Robin Carnahan is our top election official.  If she cannot maintain a basic voter database, then she must resign and make way for someone who can.

I have written two letters to Secretary Carnahan, the latest on December 13th, to ask her to explain how and why this critical  database was down for most of the day.  If there is a good reason, let’s hear it.  If she lacks the resources to make sure it does not happen again, she should ask for them.  Voters should know that Robin Carnahan will do her job and the voter database will work as expected.

You may also recall that the Chair of the St. Louis Election Board hired a security firm to “secure” the Board offices on Election Day.  This firm was also on the payroll of my opponent Congressman Russ Carnahan.  As the facts have slowly become public it appears that Ms. McCann broke the law regarding hiring.  Last week, I asked that Attorney General Kris Koster address this conduct.  McCann should be held accountable in an effort to make sure that it does not happen again.

The integrity of our voting system relies on a functional and reliable systems for running elections.  It also requires that our election official conduct the people’s business in a way that gives confidence.  When a database fails on election day or an election official engages in illegal conduct, we all lose.  Citizens deserve better and should demand it.

Open House Jan 2nd

We will be having an Open House on January 2, 2011 to celebrate our campaign, to spend time together, and to talk about the future.  Please join us at Two Hearts Banquet Center in South County from 3-6 pm.  Please bring your friends and family for refreshments including – as usual – McArthur’s Bakery desserts!

Tax Deal is a Bad Deal

There are at least three major problems with the pending tax bill, but before we examine these, let’s first acknowledge what is good about it.

The good thing is that liberals are finally admitting on record that allowing working men and women – and their employers – keep more of what they earn is a good thing for the economy.  Keynesian economics attempts to stimulate demand, but we need to do is stimulate enterprise.  You do that by telling entrepreneurs that the risks they take will pay off.

Farmers do not plow, plant or harvest when there is a tornado brewing.  They park their equipment in as secure a place as possible and head for the storm cellar.  They do not do this because they do not care about the hungry of the world.  They do this because during a storm, you have to protect what you already have.  Businesses are still in a “storm warning” mentality, primarily concerned with preserving their business.

This leads to the first problem I have with the details of the tax bill.  It is being sold as stimulation for the economy, and it is not.  Payroll taxes are being temporarily cut, but other than that, we are only extending the current tax regime by two years.  This is better than having taxes jump up, but this is not a marginal rate cut.  I hope it has a positive effect, but so far these rates have not been particularly simulative and we have no reason to expect a Reagan-like acceleration in economic activity.

Further, we have barely kicked the can down the road.  Two years is not the kind of timeframe that allows businesses to engage in healthy long-term planning (even the Soviets made plans for five years!)  Tax rates need to be stable for long periods of time, and the looming promise needs to be lower taxes, not higher.  This threat of higher taxes in two more years will have an effect on the economy, and it won’t be good.

My second problem is that the deal includes a tax hike on estates.  Today, there is no estate tax.  William Buffet and Bill Gates Sr. are welcome to send the IRS a check for their estates if they so choose, but farmers and other business owners who have accumulated wealth by being wise stewards ought not be penalized for dying.  It is immoral for the government to demand a fresh cut from wealth that has already been taxed many times over.

The third problem is spending.  Like the much loathed Cornhusker Kickback and Louisiana Purchase to pass Obamacare, politicians are promising billons in spending to buy off votes from liberal members of congress.  Moreover, no cuts in spending are being made to offset the new spending.  Again, business leaders are not stupid.  Spending today must be paid by taxes collected tomorrow.  These levels of spending will have to be paid for somehow and entrepreneurs know they have had a target painted on their wallet for the last four years.

The President begrudgingly offered a weak-beer “compromise” (calling us “hostage takers” in the process) that gets his team billions more borrowing and spending while offering a mere two-year extension of tax cuts and a huge increase in estate taxes.  This deal was born out of the kind of wheeling and dealing that the Tea Party opposed.  All around, this deal stinks once you get past the shiny wrapper.  It is not why our team won in November.

Thanks for reading.  I look forward to meeting you again soon.
Ed

Read more at Ed Martin for Congress