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Review Just say I dont to Bride Wars
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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Meltdown 101 The importance of same-store sales
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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Broadcasts to mobile devices to start in 22 cities
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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New TV trends Internet movies, 3-D, power saving
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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UN halts Gaza aid, truce resolution deal approved
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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UN Security Council calls for Gaza cease-fire
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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UN Security Council calls for immediate Gaza truce
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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UN calls for immediate cease-fire in Gaza
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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Pope Benedict jokes about hoarse voice
Southern Ledger - January 9, 2009
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TOLD YOU SO
January 3, 2005 -
January 10, 2005
Last August I had the opportunity to appear before the self-proclaimed “independent” Tennessee Tax Structure Study Commission. The Commission had been created after then-Governor Don Sundquist and his pro-income tax allies in the legislature failed to shove an unnecessary and unwanted income tax down the throats of Tennessee taxpayers. The Commission was purportedly intended to study the state’s tax structure and develop ideas for reforming the system. The real intent was to recommend an income tax.
The fraud underlying the supposed “fair-minded” examination of our tax structure was apparent from the outset. Of the 19 members of the Commission, five (including the Chairman) were appointed by pro-income tax Governor Sundquist. Seven members were appointed by pro-income tax House Speaker Jimmy Naifeh. The remaining seven were appointed by pro-income tax Lt. Governor John Wilder. Not surprisingly, the Commission was stacked with pro-income tax loyalists. The Commission membership included former State Senator Bob Rochelle, an adamant proponent of the income tax who chose not to seek reelection rather than face the wrath of his constituents. Several other advocates of an income tax were appointed to the Commission, including its Chairman Nelson Andrews. Meanwhile, not a single vocal opponent to the income tax was appointed to the Commission. Not one.
The economic assumptions adopted by the Commission revealed a strong income tax bias. The selection of those allowed to give testimony to the Commission also showed a strong prejudice for an income tax since most of those making presentations were from pro-income tax groups and think tanks. The income-tax-stacked-Commission wanted to make sure they only heard information that would be consistent with their bias for an income tax. They succeeded.
Last spring, Democrats in the legislature figured out that the Commission’s expected recommendation of an income tax would likely prove to be a political liability for them in the 2004 elections. So they extended the deadline for the Commission to produce its final report until just after the elections. The Democrat leadership knew what was coming, because they had set up the Commission to produce the report they wanted.
Last week, the Commission produced their final report. It was the same report they could have released the first day they met, but instead they engaged in a sham “study” and wasted about $770,000 of our tax dollars to recommend … an income tax.
When I appeared before the Commission, I shared revenue and spending figures from the past decade that make it clear Tennessee suffers from SPENDING problems, not REVENUE problems. I also noted the obvious: that the Commission was stacked to produce an income tax recommendation rather than engage in an honest appraisal of Tennessee’s tax structure. The Commissioners were outraged that anyone would actually appear before them and present the unvarnished truth. Rather than deal with the indisputable facts and figures that I presented to them, they attacked me personally and vehemently denied that the “fix was in.”
But now three members of the Commission have filed a “Minority Report” which confirms exactly what I said: the income tax was “ruthlessly” rammed down the throats of the Commission by members who were promoting an income tax agenda. The three Commissioners -- Julius Johnson, Dan Haskell and Will Pugh -- noted that the process was rushed and that the Commission did not really consider any other alternatives other than the income tax. (The Commission’s final report, including the Minority Report, can be found at www.state.tn.us/taxstructurestudycommission.)
It is a shame that an opportunity for a fair examination of the patchwork quilt of our tax structure was sacrificed in favor of an agenda-driven promotional effort for the income tax. It is ridiculous that $770,000 was wasted in this pathetic display of political theater. It is sad that some fair-minded citizens allowed themselves to be used on this Commission as shills for the income tax crowd.
But what is truly disgusting is the fact that Governor Phil Bredesen and legislative leaders from both sides of the political aisle are giving this Commission even a glimmer of credibility rather than denouncing both the process and the recommendation itself. By failing to clearly reject the report and the means by which it was produced they are siding with the “whatever it takes” income tax crowd and against the taxpayers of Tennessee. Taxpayers should take note.
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THE TENNCAR DEBACLE -
November 20, 2004 -
December 26, 2004
No, the headline is not a typo. Just imagine if Tennessee had instituted a plan to provide car insurance to the poor, uninsured and uninsurable instead of health care insurance. And imagine that car insurance plan, let's call it TennCar, had been based on the same flawed premises and implemented in the same way as TennCare. And finally, imagine we allowed it to become the bloated, bureaucratic, fraud-ridden nightmare that we have today with TennCare. When you look at... |
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THE TENNESSEE INCOME TAX IS DEAD, RIGHT? -
November 8, 2004 -
November 15, 2004
A Tennessee income tax was not on the ballot this election year, but the issue was clearly not far from voters’ minds. Despite election year pronouncements that the issue is “dead” the contentious debate over a state income tax is still far from over. In fact, when the Tennessee Tax Study Commission issues an expected recommendation for an income tax in December, the issue will re-emerge just in time for a new legislative session. With Governor Phil Bredesen’s much touted TennCare reforms hittin... |
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WINNERS AND LOSERS FROM ELECTION DAY. -
November 1, 2004 -
November 7, 2004
The bitterly contested election of 2004 is finally over, but the fallout from the election will continue for a long time to come. There were plenty of winners, and losers, on election day…and many of them were not even on the ballot!
LOSERS
Governor Phil Bredesen. Governor Bredesen launched a vicious assault on several Republican candidates who ended up victorious, most notably Sen.-elect Diane Black, Sen.-elect Jim Tracy, Rep.-elect Curtis Johnson, and Rep. Judd Matheny, among... |
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DRAFT DECEPTION BY THE DEMOCRATS -
October 5, 2004 -
October 12, 2004
During the past several months the Democrat party underground has been spreading a bogus rumor claiming the Bush Administration is planning to revive a mandatory military draft immediately after the November election. CBS, in keeping with its peculiar standards of fair journalism (which seems founded upon “what ridiculous story can we air this week to help the Kerry campaign”), aired an item last week which was intended to give the rumor credence. As planned, the Kerry campaign pointed to the “n... |
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IS TENNESSEE "BUSINESS FRIENDLY?" -
August 16, 2004 -
August 22, 2004
Competition among states for business growth and relocation has never been more intense. Much of the attention on economic development at the state and local level focuses on companies that relocate - and the jobs they bring with them. But the real engine of economic growth is the expansion of existing companies, big and small, that already do business here.
A large company choosing to move from California to Tennessee may get the headlines, but the hundreds of small businesses across... |
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