The RNC has its priorities; are they yours?

September 2, 2005

I realize that the devastation in the Gulf Coast has not brought the rest of the world, even the political world, to a stop. But in light of the ongoing, almost slow-motion calamity, you’d think the Republican National Committee would have better sense that to send this out to its list yesterday afternoon.

For the last four years, President Bush and Republicans in Congress have championed a pro-growth agenda that has brought tax relief to millions of Americans. Historic legislation in 2001 and 2003 put America on the track to economic growth, and today our economic outlook is bright. There is more work to do, however, to ensure that tax-paying Americans can keep more of their own hard-earned income.

When they return from their August recess, Senators will consider a key issue: elimination of the death tax. The death tax is an unfair double taxation of income, which hurts America’s small businesses and farms and threatens job growth. Unfortunately, Senate Democrats are working hard to oppose our efforts to eliminate this unfair tax.

Will you help bring tax relief to more hard-working Americans? Call Senator George V. Voinovich at 202-224-3353 today and ask them to eliminate the death tax.

The letter went on with similar nonsense, and was signed by RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman.

I’ve heard of public officials with tin ears, but this is ridiculous. Mehlman and the RNC are firing off a letter to its base two days after a stunning government report was released showing rising poverty and falling income for working families, and the same day chaos broke out in New Orleans with poverty-stricken Americans suffering for days without food and water.

Ken Mehlman’s top priority right now is more tax cuts for millionaires? Is he serious?

These people just don’t get it. Thousands are at risk, we have a major city in utter chaos and all these people can trumpet are the tax cuts that these assholes pushed through on the backs of the folks that are under the threat of death………….RIGHT NOW!!!!

I for one am disgusted and outraged.

  • It truly boggles the mind. Do people have to actively work at being this deeply insensitive?

    First, Bush and his guitar.

    Second, Condi and her NYC vacation, going to a Broadway show & shopping trip.

    Like many, I’ve been preoccupied for the past 5 days with what is going on in the South. High-ranking government offiials should at least care enough to project the image that they care about thousands of suffering, starving, dying and drowning Americans. Sheesh.

  • Mehlman and company are such “smacked asses.”

    The Democrats have a theme, if they will only use it: “What America needs is ‘a New Deal for a New Century.'”

  • Hey, Mr. Mehlman is absolutely correct: “[t]he death tax is an unfair double taxation of income…” You hear me, it’s unfair! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to finish this Bloody Mary before my tee time.

  • It’s awful funny how people get so worked up over a tax only about 1% if the population pays.
    The morons don’t know why we have an Estate Tax and all seem to think they have to pay it.
    I tried pointing out to my FIL that the taxes his mother’s estate paid were state and not federal. He gets the two confused or else thinks that Fed and State taxes are the same thing.
    I bitch about high payroll taxes, he says retarded shit like “Bill Gates paid over million in property taxes!”
    I could choke that mother fucker sometimes.

  • Pay close attention to this stuff – don’t forget Andy Card’s maxim – “you don’t introduce new products in August” – but save the marketing for right after Labor Day. The GOP machine is geared up and obviously the message of the season is making the tax cuts permanent. They aren’t going to let little things like natural disasters get in the way of their marketing message.

  • Here’s a New York Times editorial on how the
    bottom 80% are faring in the Bush economy:

    http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/01/opinion/01thu2.html?incamp=article_popular

    The employment figures came out today. We added
    169,000 jobs, and this is being trumpeted as great
    news. I could not believe it. This is barely above the
    150,000 needed to keep pace with the increase in
    the labor market.

    It is refreshing to see that in the wake of the
    disaster in New Orleans some journalists are
    actually doing their jobs, but on the rest of
    the scene it’s business as usual, I’m afraid.

    One would hope that New Orleans would be
    a wakeup call, and tie all the atrocities of
    this administration together for the American
    people to see, but it looks more like it will
    be treated as some isolated incident.

  • “Is he serious?”

    Not only is he serious, he’s worried. This tax break is the RepubCo priority. N.O. is not a disaster. It’s a hindrance and a potential danger to them achieving their goals.

    It’s imperative that Mehlman get out the word and try to keep the faithful’s eye on the ball. N.O. is just a bump on the road to further dismantling of the Federal system and if it causes large groups of people to start questioning their goals and methods, MUCH GROUND COULD BE LOST.

    Bush is standing in front of the world in his underwear and muck filled boots. His usefullness is coming to an end. They hadn’t planned on being called on their baloney in such a blatant way. Baghdad is one thing. But this is America and these refugees are in Texas and Arkansas and Georgia. They talk like us.

    Kenny and crew do not want to hear: WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!!????? WHAT IN THE G.D. HELL IS GOING ON IN THIS COUNTRY??

    No, Ken boy is got his finger to his mouth……..Ssshhhhh, ssshhhhhhh, SHUT-UP, JUST SHUT-UP!! CAN’T YOU SEE, THE COUNTRY’S SLEEPING. Please, oh please, just one more tax break before they wake up. Puuulllllleeeeeeezzzzzz……

    So it’s how much can they get rid of before they have to hunker down and wait until the crap from their adventures thus far have been cleaned up so they can get back to work?

    Screw ’em all.

    And to brain dead American’s……time to wake up now.

  • Aside from not getting it about the ongoing diaster in the Gulf Coast, they don’t get some basic finance.

    How is it they’ve fooled all these people into believing taxes are bad at the same time they’ve ramped up spending?

    How in the hell can they perpetually take in less than they spend and keep touting tax breaks? How in the hell don’t the American people get it?

  • If the American public were aware of their own reality (if the Democratic Party would bother to educate them to it) there wouldn’t be enough people rich enough or mean enough to elect a Republican to dog catcher, let alone Congress.

  • I have one to top off Mehlman’s insensitivity. This morning in our local rag my state rep – a Republican – actually wrote a letter to the editor blaming Clinton for 9/11 Clinton ignored terrorism’s threats

    I don’t know which disturbs me the most, my rep for saying this or the paper for printing it.

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