Taxes don’t spur the economy
The federal government is running a huge deficit and there is talk of tax increases.
Oklahoma’s state government has a budget shortfall and there is talk of tax increases and dipping into the state’s emergency fund.
The City of Tulsa has another $10 million-plus shortfall and some city councilors want to raise taxes and fees.
You can’t spend your way out of a deficit.
Economic growth comes from the private sector, not from government make-work jobs.
Obama’s stimulus plan is a failure. Pledging to halt unemployment at an 8 percent ceiling, joblessness has hit double digits.
Higher federal taxes will just make things worse.
Obama wants to tax rich people. The problem is, there are not enough of them. The only way to raise the billions he wants to spend is taxing the middle class.
Oklahoma’s state government is bloated and has been growing a lot faster than inflation over the past decade. It was time for an adjustment.
The state is ruled by a series of boards filled with bureaucrats with an insatiable appetite for revenue. That has to stop. New taxes just make the problem worse.
Tulsa doesn’t need a higher sales tax or higher property taxes. Tulsa County Assessor Ken Yazel says Tulsa already has the highest property taxes in Oklahoma.
Double-digit sales tax would drive companies away from Tulsa County.
Cut taxes. Give people more of their own money to spend. Help businesses get capital and make profits that they can reinvest in more jobs and products.
That’s the path to economic success.
Henry joins Obama’s power grab
Here is another bad idea from the Obama Administration.
Obama, in a thinly veiled power grab, is creating a “Council of Governors.” The real reason is to strip states of constitutional powers by co-opting liberal governors.
“This bipartisan team strengthens the partnership between our state governments and the federal government when it comes to ensuring our national preparedness and homeland defense,” Obama said.
And of course, Obama has appointed Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry to the nine-member council.
The governors will get marching orders from secretaries of defense and homeland security and other key federal officials on matters such as the National Guard and homeland defense.
Henry, not the sharpest tool in the shed, said he is honored by the appointment and pleased that Obama is seeking input from the states on such issues.
“This is a great opportunity for the states to have direct input,” he said.
Henry is term limited and will be replaced as governor in 2010. He is arguably the least effective and most liberal governor in recent Oklahoma history.
Henry avoids the tag as the worst governor in Oklahoma history because, frankly, some have gone to prison.
Henry will have one lasting legacy – legalized gambling. Because of his push for class 3 gambling and the Oklahoma Lottery, the state now has 110 casinos and a lottery that promised a lot more money for education than it can ever deliver.
Now, Henry is happy as a clam to deliver power reserved for the State of Oklahoma to the Obama Administration, which still has a chance to be the worst in U.S. history.
Dr. Alveda King is pro-life
Dr. Alveda King is a woman known for the content of her character.
King, the niece of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is a strong advocate for the sanctity of human life.
She is also a harsh critic of Planned Parenthood and its despicable tactics to promote abortion.
Responding to a commercial showing Florida quarterback Tim Tebow talking about his pro-life view, Planned Parenthood filmed a response that targets black Americans.
Responding to Planned Parenthood’s not so subtle Tebow family rebuke, Dr. Alveda King said: “Planned Parenthood’s response to the Tebow family’s Super Bowl ad continues their founder, eugenicist Margaret Sanger’s history of deception. They feature two African American athletes who are talking about ‘respecting’ women’s choices without ever mentioning the ‘A’ word.”
King said, “The Black community makes up 12 percent of America’s population, yet Black women get over 30 percent of all abortions. Of the over 50 million babies aborted in America since 1973, about 1/3 of the dead babies are black. Planned Parenthood, the leading abortion provider, puts many of their offices in Black neighborhoods.
“Once again, Planned Parenthood tries to hide the painful truth; it is running an abortion dynasty, reaping benefits from killing black babies. Planned Parenthood knows that abortion hurts women, kills babies and targets minorities. Yet, they keep pressing their case, and they keep using their victims to support their agenda of murder. What’s wrong with this picture?”
King and her family are famous for standing on the principle that life is a primary right in America.
It’s obvious that Planned Parenthood thinks the destruction of innocent babies in their mother’s wombs trumps that fundamental American ideal.