What Do We Believe About the Role of Government in the economy?

The endless effrontery of this administration to force its policies down our collective throats, is ubiquitous. But even in a regime that is so unashamedly self promoting, the scheduled committee meeting to intimidate business into promoting the Obamacare and by extension the law makers who favored it seems egregious. And, yet, I have heard very little comment about this. Certainly not the outcry this planned abuse of power deserves.

From a story on FoxNews.com April 14, 2010. "Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., has canceled a hearing intended to grill CEOs who took a charge against profits because of the health care reform bill. The cancellation came after they realized what everyone already knew - that the companies were required to do what they did because of accounting rules. Waxman and others had reacted with outrage and accused the companies of doing it - in essence, to make health care reform look bad."

The fact is that Obamacare ends a tax break that companies used keep drug benefits for their retirees instead of allowing them to go Medicare. The article then says, "The Democratic memo cancelling the hearing notes, 'These one-time charges were required by applicable accounting rules. Under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles as determined by the FASB, companies are required to take a noncash charge against current earnings to recognize a tax liability for the estimated future tax effects of a new law.'

It goes on to read, 'This noncash charge must reflect the entire present value of the loss of future tax deductions on the subsidy, and it must be taken in the period in which the law is enacted. Moreover, if the level of the impact is deemed "material" under SEC regulations, the company must file the report promptly following the triggering event, in this case the enactment of the law.'"

This is a naked attempt to coerce businesses to act in a fashion that would benefit the law makers who voted for this legislation. Citizens should be outraged about this. This shows a complete lack of ethics. Has it come to this in our history, that we are so cowed by our government that we blithely ignore the open bullying of private institutions for the "offense" of failing to make the government policy's look good? This was unadulterated extortion, should be met with public outcry and government employees whether elected, appointed or hired should be terminated if they attempt to misuse their authority for their own benefit.

What does this say about us a citizens? What does this say about our government? What does this say about our future.

Misinformation about the tax burden

"'We are over-taxed as it is,' Doris said bluntly.
'Well, let's talk about that, because this is an area where there's been just a whole lot of misinformation, and I'm going to have to work hard over the next several months to clean up a lot of the misapprehensions that people have,' the president said." This is start of "The Washington Post" April 03, 2010 article entitled, "Obama's 17-minute, 2,500-word response to woman's claim of being 'over-taxed'".
Poor President Obama imagine his frustration. Here he was taking his valuable time to enlighten the ignorant battery plant workers; when, all of sudden, he comes face to face with Doris and many others like her who are "mis-apprehensive" about taxes. But even when faced with such massive ignorance the President still donated 17 minutes to explain to Doris, the petty factors in her life are nothing compared with the national issues. So while, Doris was merely struggling to say feed her family or maybe pay her mortgage, the President was fighting to keep keep funding national expenditures while the national debt is growing. While Doris was working to repair her car or replace those worn tires, his administration was striving to see that insurance companies were not becoming too profitable. And while Doris was laying awake at night trying to figure out how to get a new or better job; the President's flight on Air Force One was practically destroyed by Congressional reports on government overspending.
When one looks down at the pathetically small lives of battery plant workers like Doris from the lofty height of Presidential peaks, it becomes apparent, that that the "tax burden" of battery makers is just another barrier to the President. We can all be grateful that he took 17 minutes out of his important life to correct Doris' misapprehension.