I read, with amazement, the news stories posted at IdahoStatesman.com and KTVB.com regarding Jim Risch's announcement that he is running for the U.S. Senate.

     It hasn't been clear to any of us, I'm sure (a little sarcasm intended), that he planned to run for Larry Craig's seat, even though he is less than a year into his term as Lt. Governor!

     Butch attended the Risch press conference today, and told reporters that he was supporting Risch.  When asked if he would appoint Risch if Craig stepped down, Otter said, "My support speaks for itself."

     Normally, we don't see current elected officials endorsing candidates in a Primary.  Sure, the team all gathers together in support of one another after the Primary is over in an attempt to show solidarity, and that is to be expected.  But, to see Senator Mike Crapo, Butch Otter and other elected officials standing in support -- and for Mike to be serving as Co-Chair of the Risch for U.S. Senate campaign is very, very different.

     I don't know about you, but I believe that this type of "cronyism" is a big part of the problem we have today in government.  It almost seems as though we have evolved into an "anointing" of sorts.

     The first three words of our Constitution are, "We the People."  That is, the power belongs to the people -- not a handful of elected officials or party leaders -- to make the important decisions about who, or who does not, represent them in their government.  The "anointing" yesterday goes completely against that premise, and people should be very angry about it.

     Risch mentioned in his announcement that his experience in addressing issues such as property tax relief was a good reason to support him.  I beg to differ.  As acting Governor, he called a Special Session of the Legislature that cost taxpayers $30,000, the result of which was about $300 in savings on a $100,000 property.  That would have been great if they had then figured out a way to spend less or reduce the size of government.  But, they didn't do that.  Instead, they raised the sales tax from 5% to 6%.  A tax shift does not constitute "relief."

     Besides that, the reduction in property tax also means a reduction in the amount that can be deducted on federal and state income tax returns (for those that have a mortgage), which potentially increases both their federal and state tax burden - in addition to the increased sales tax.

     For those that are not in the position to own their own home, the property tax savings was realized by the owner of the property, but was not passed on to them in the form of reduced rent -- so they continued to pay the same amount AND to pay more in sales tax.

     Good plan.  Great leadership.  Just what we need more of in Washington -- smoke and mirrors!

     With partisan bickering, cronyism, and elitism heading up the majority of Congress - we see nothing but more and more control, social engineering, government growth, out-of-control spending, and an ever-increasing national debt (now estimated to be around $60 trillion).

     The people are given very little choice in the way of candidates because it seems that only those that have a great deal of personal wealth can even seek office.  Even Jim Risch is a wealthy man as a lawyer and a "ranch owner."  In fact, it has been reported that he spent $360,000 of his personal wealth to secure the Lt. Governor job that pays $27,000 a year.  How "in touch" with Idahoans or the American people are people like this?

     According to the polls -- not much.  As a matter of fact, the approval rating of Congress is at an all-time low at 11%.  That's a sad commentary on our system!

     "We the People" have got to take our government back.  It is supposed to be a "government of the people, by the people, and for the people," but has eveolved into something quite different.  Now, when we talk about growth or economic expansion, the discussion isn't about how much better off we are as Americans -- how we can achieve our dreams -- but how much more revenue the government, at every level, has gained.

     Whether through higher fuel prices gained through the Dingell plan that would suck up about 30% of the price of gasoline, or reduce the mortgage interest deduction that would increase federal income taxes -- its all about growth of government and social engineering.  The "hidden goals" of a plan like that is to control people economically by forcing them into smaller cars and smaller homes.  And, that is just ONE proposal before Congress today.

     "We the People" simply must take action and get involved before it is too late.  We need to elect people that are more like us to represent us, and return the government to serving the people instead of controlling every aspect of everyone's lives.

     I submitted my name to the Governor because I understand the workings and processes of government.  Our Constitution and government service is ingrained in me in the same way as  professional football  or other activities are in others.  It is truly a passion, and has been all my life.

     I'm a middle-class guy that has raised a family, and has been a strong supporter, worker and leader in many volunteer organizations from Scouting to Kiwanis.  I've been self-employed, worked in a potato processing plant, served in retail management and now develop training programs for industrial workers.  My work and life experiences have seen me involved in labor unions, political action committees, state and national lobbying organizations, and political campaigns.  I listen, learn and fight for what I believe is right.  I clearly understand Idaho values and the Idaho way of life as an Idaho native of 51 years.

     I am part of the majority of Idahoans who work hard every day to make a living, raise a family, enjoy life, and give back to society.  I know and understand the pain and challenges of running a small family business, and struggling to make ends meet -- something that so many in government service have absolutely no concept of.

     I believe my "Core Values" are the things that matter most to the majority of the people of Idaho, and these are the things I would stand up and fight for on your behalf if I were to be privileged to be your selection to serve in the United States Senate.

     We can continue to go down the path of the status quo, with elected leaders that do not understand what the people really want by our failure to stand up and take action through our involvement and our vote -- or we can take our government back by getting involved TODAY.

     I fully understand that many of you don't believe that change can be effected.  I know you probably believe that nothing you do or say matters, so you don't believe that you should even worry about it.  I'm saying that we simply MUST take action NOW before it's too late for any of us!

     If you had the time to read some of the ideas that are being kicked around in Congress right now, you'd be shocked.  You might even be angered into action.  The Dingill bill I mentioned earlier, is just one of the ridiculous ideas that, unless we take action now, we'll surely be living with tomorrow.

     "We the People" must take our government back.  It's time to take the dirty little games and cronyism OUT of politics, and to return government to being the servant of the people.

 I welcome your comments, suggstions or questions.  Please write me at Kent@MarmonForIdaho.com!

How can ANYONE say they "Aren't Interested" in Politics?

     Congress passed a “supplemental spending” bill today (12/19/07) in an amount that exceeds a half-trillion dollars.   Over A HALF-TRILLION!   That’s $1,826.39 for every male and female citizen of the United States, including children!  Our elected officials, including our President, had 48 hours to study the bill, which would require them not only to read, but to “carefully consider” one-and-a-quarter pages per minute, with no stopping for breaks, food, or sleep.  The only ones that really know what the $550,000,000,000 in spending was approved for are those that authored the bill.

     If that, by itself, isn’t enough to anger you enough to be “interested,” how about the fact that that half-trillion dollars will be added to our national debt, already estimated to be between $60 and $100 Trillion?  The interest on that debt (not including this giant spending bill) is over $200,000,000,000 a year ($200 BILLION) -- $664.14 per male and female citizen of the United States, including children.

     That’s just “supplemental” – or additional spending above the $2,387 Billion ($2.387 TRILLION) budget for fiscal year 2008.

     Irresponsible?  Ridiculous?  Out-of-control?

     WHY ARE SO MANY WILLING TO ALLOW THIS TO CONTINUE? 

     Does it bother you that over 14% of every $3.00 per gallon you spend for gasoline is collected in taxes?  Will it bother you when they add another 50¢ per gallon in federal tax if Michigan Congressman Dingle gets his way?

     Does anyone consider that we are paying out 7.65¢ of every dollar earned is taken for a bankrupt Social Security and Medicare system that most of us will never see any kind of return on?  Actually, the taxes collected for those two programs total 15.3¢ on every dollar we earn, because our employer pays the other 7.65¢ that could otherwise be paid to you.  If you are a business owner, you actually pay the whole 15.3¢ per dollar earned on your earnings.

     The “social programs” of our government add up to nearly half of the total federal budget.  These are the programs that amount to stealing from one group of people to give to another.  If you steal money or personal items from another person, you are breaking the law.  But, our government does it every day, and calls it “contributions.”

     In 1776, we declared independence from a nation and a government that was over-taxing and over-regulating colonists.  People were up-in-arms fighting for their personal freedom and liberty.  What has happened to us?

     Today, we pay out over half of our incomes in taxes of one form or another.  We “reward” our elected officials who spend money on pork-barrel projects by re-electing them so that they’ll “give” us more.  Guess what?  They aren’t “giving” us anything.  They’re taking our hard-earned money away from us and spreading it around as they see fit.  Doesn’t that anger you, even a little?

     Let’s set outrageous taxes and out-of-control spending aside for a minute, and talk about “control.”

     An “Energy Bill” was recently passed that requires automobile manufacturers to build and sell only cars that will get a minimum of 35 miles per gallon by 2012.  The law goes on to require that there will be no incandescent light bulbs (the regular bulbs we’ve used for years) sold after 2012.  Dingle’s proposed Carbon Tax bill will penalize you if you live in a house that is over 3,100 square feet in size, or if you own and drive a vehicle that uses a lot of gasoline.  Clinton’s proposed National (Socialized) Health Care program would make your medical decisions and choices for you.  The list goes on-and-on.

     This nation was founded on the concept of a free market and capitalism.  Simply stated, YOU make the decisions about what products or services succeed, and which ones fail through your personal purchasing choices.  For example, if you want a car that gets 35 miles-per-gallon, you would buy one.  If a majority of those in the market for a new car did the same thing, it wouldn’t take long for other manufacturers to design, build, and offer for sale vehicles that would get 35 OR MORE miles per gallon.  Their only other option would be to go out of business.  It doesn’t take (or require) a law to bring about changes in any products or services – it only takes YOU making decisions that are best for YOU.

     I think you get the idea.

     How about the constant attacks on our Constitution and Bill of Rights?  For example, the Second Amendment says that our “right to bear arms will not be infringed.”  That means that we have the right to own and carry guns.  It doesn’t say, “unless the guns are semi-automatic” or “unless they are hand-guns” -- it doesn’t say that you can own them if you live in a city with a population under 200,000 – and it doesn’t say that anyone can create rules and regulations regarding them, even if they make sense.  It says, “shall not be infringed.”  Yet, our government, at all levels, continues to find ways to erode that right through regulation and so-called licensing or permits.

     And, that’s just one example.

     By not being “interested” in politics, a person is allowing those that do vote to elect the people that govern, control and tax everyone.  They give up their rights and freedoms by not taking seriously their obligation to be involved.

     If you are one that is “not interested” and you continue down that path, those in government will continue doing whatever they want to do; Socialism will expand; all your choices will be made for you; and the United States of America will no longer exist as our founders intended it to be.

     My suggestion is to get interested, get involved, and make the right kinds of decisions before it is too late for any of us. say they “aren’t interested in politics?”

     That’s just “supplemental” – or additional spending above the $2,387 Billion ($2.387 TRILLION) budget for fiscal year 2008.

     Irresponsible?  Ridiculous?  Out-of-control?

     WHY ARE SO MANY WILLING TO ALLOW THIS TO CONTINUE? 

     Does it bother you that over 14% of every $3.00 per gallon you spend for gasoline is collected in taxes?  Will it bother you when they add another 50¢ per gallon in federal tax if Michigan Congressman Dingle gets his way?

     Does anyone consider that we are paying out 7.65¢ of every dollar earned is taken for a bankrupt Social Security and Medicare system that most of us will never see any kind of return on?  Actually, the taxes collected for those two programs total 15.3¢ on every dollar we earn, because our employer pays the other 7.65¢ that could otherwise be paid to you.  If you are a business owner, you actually pay the whole 15.3¢ per dollar earned on your earnings.

     The “social programs” of our government add up to nearly half of the total federal budget.  These are the programs that amount to stealing from one group of people to give to another.  If you steal money or personal items from another person, you are breaking the law.  But, our government does it every day, and calls it “contributions.”

     In 1776, we declared independence from a nation and a government that was over-taxing and over-regulating colonists.  People were up-in-arms fighting for their personal freedom and liberty.  What has happened to us?

     Today, we pay out over half of our incomes in taxes of one form or another.  We “reward” our elected officials who spend money on pork-barrel projects by re-electing them so that they’ll “give” us more.  Guess what?  They aren’t “giving” us anything.  They’re taking our hard-earned money away from us and spreading it around as they see fit.  Doesn’t that anger you, even a little?

     Let’s set outrageous taxes and out-of-control spending aside for a minute, and talk about “control.”

     An “Energy Bill” was recently passed that requires automobile manufacturers to build and sell only cars that will get a minimum of 35 miles per gallon by 2012.  The law goes on to require that there will be no incandescent light bulbs (the regular bulbs we’ve used for years) sold after 2012.  Dingle’s proposed Carbon Tax bill will penalize you if you live in a house that is over 3,100 square feet in size, or if you own and drive a vehicle that uses a lot of gasoline.  Clinton’s proposed National (Socialized) Health Care program would make your medical decisions and choices for you.  The list goes on-and-on.

     This nation was founded on the concept of a free market and capitalism.  Simply stated, YOU make the decisions about what products or services succeed, and which ones fail through your personal purchasing choices.  For example, if you want a car that gets 35 miles-per-gallon, you would buy one.  If a majority of those in the market for a new car did the same thing, it wouldn’t take long for other manufacturers to design, build, and offer for sale vehicles that would get 35 OR MORE miles per gallon.  Their only other option would be to go out of business.  It doesn’t take (or require) a law to bring about changes in any products or services – it only takes YOU making decisions that are best for YOU.

     I think you get the idea.

     How about the constant attacks on our Constitution and Bill of Rights?  For example, the Second Amendment says that our “right to bear arms will not be infringed.”  That means that we have the right to own and carry guns.  It doesn’t say, “unless the guns are semi-automatic” or “unless they are hand-guns” -- it doesn’t say that you can own them if you live in a city with a population under 200,000 – and it doesn’t say that anyone can create rules and regulations regarding them, even if they make sense.  It says, “shall not be infringed.”  Yet, our government, at all levels, continues to find ways to erode that right through regulation and so-called licensing or permits.

     And, that’s just one example.

     By not being “interested” in politics, a person is allowing those that do vote to elect the people that govern, control and tax everyone.  They give up their rights and freedoms by not taking seriously their obligation to be involved.

     If you are one that is “not interested” and you continue down that path, those in government will continue doing whatever they want to do; Socialism will expand; all your choices will be made for you; and the United States of America will no longer exist as our founders intended it to be.

     My suggestion is to get interested, get involved, and make the right kinds of decisions before it is too late for any of us. say they “aren’t interested in politics?”

One Hundred Ten Billion Dollars.  That's Billion, with a B.

     $110,000,000,000.00.  I don't think most people can write an amount that large on a regular check blank!

     If you made $30,000 a year, and you sent it all in to pay that $110,000,000,000.00 debt, it would take you 3,666,666.67 years to pay it off.  No, make that 7,333,333.33 years after you've paid out about half of your income in the various taxes that we pay.  Of course, that would be paying it off without interest.

     You know, you could buy 4,400,000 new $25,000 automobiles with that money - or 220,000 half-million dollar homes!

     If each and every man, woman and child in the United States wrote a check for $363.13 today, we'd have the $110,000,000,000 that Hillary needs for her socialist - I mean "national" health plan (based on an estimated 302,924,113 population figure).

$110,000,000,000 would pay the budgets of:

• Justice, National Resources and Environment, Agriculture and Energy - with $5.3 billion left over, OR

• Transportation and Foreign Affiars - with $600 million left over, OR

• Foreign Affairs, Community and Regional Development, Science and Technology and General Government - with $5.6 billion left over.

     The interest on our national debt that is due for the year is about $20 million more than twice Hillary's health care fiasco.

     The government anticipates total tax receipts of $2.4 trillion -- and the budget expenditure amounts total $2.8 trillion.  So, do we add another $110 billion to our national debt so that it will grow even higher than the estimated $59 Trillion - that's Trillion, with a T?

     We all know that government programs never cost what is estimated - they always cost more.  And, $110 Billion is just the estimated cost for the first year of the plan!

     If you want to see how much was spent by Americans for health care, CLICK on the following link: http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/IBQTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=&-fds_name=EC0200A1&-_skip=0&-ds_name=EC026211&-_lang=en.

     That'll show you what was spent in 2002 as reported to the U.S. Census Bureau.  It provides the information in $1000s of dollars, and there are 250 lines of data.  The amount shown as receipts / revenue for General Medical and Surgical Hospitals for 2002 is $480,867,839,000.  That's nearly $481 billion - and that's only one entry that's five years old.

     There's no way "universal" health care can be provided for 23% of the cost of just one line item.  Not only would you be paying higher taxes to fund socialized medicine - but you'd also be paying for the health care.  People in some of the nations that have socialized health care are paying co-pays ranging from 10 to 40% of the entire bill for some services.  In many cases, services simply aren't available, or the waiting list is so long, you might not get the care in time.

     The better plan is to open avenues to the private sector to develop better insurance products, and make those available to more people.

     To put a stop to the future development of ridiculous government expansion schemes is to pass and implement a Balanced Budget Amendment to our Constitution so that government is restricted to spend within its means.  You can be assured that your elected representatives would think twice about new programs if it meant asking you for a tax increase!

     Socialized Health Care is NOT a good plan for America or Americans!

KENT'S BLOG

On this page...

• "We the People" - What a Game! - 10/10/9/07
• "It's Time to Wake Up, America!" - 10/3/07
• "One Hundred Ten Billion Dollars.  That's Billion with a B." - 9/19/07
• How can anyone say they "aren't interested" in politics? - 12/19/07
• Be very wary of the "CHANGE" that some politicians are calling for! - 1/11/08

It's Time to Wake Up, America!

     There are already many good reasons that the approval rating of Congress has hit an all-time low of 11%  But, Democrat Congressman John Dingell of Michigan is working very hard to give us another one.

     Dingell, who represents the people of "the home of the internal combustion engine," wants a new tax implemented - in the name of greenhouse gas emissions.  Very little of his proposed money-grab would go to that "cause," but would, instead, go toward the ever-expanding Socialist agenda now being pushed by the Democrat majority in Congress.

     Yes, I said Socialist.  The doctrine of Socialism is a system of economic organization that calls for a distribution of wealth by the government to increase social and economic equality.

     One of the "programs" that Dingell wants to have benefit from his so-called "Carbon Tax" is the Earned Income Tax Credit.  Basically, low income families that pay little or no income tax receive "refunds" of their withholding, as well as other people's money.  Dingell wants to use the program to offset his new "Carbon Tax" for low income families.

     He wants other proceeds of the tax to go to Medicare and Social Security; State Children's' Health Insurance Program (SCHIP); and Universal Health Care, as he puts it, "upon passage."

     He wants some of the money from his new tax to go to help low income families with home energy assistance.  His plan isn't all a shift from one economic group to another, he suggests using some of the money for conservation and renewable energy research and development.

     So, what does he want to tax?  There are actually three major areas that would be taxed.  The first group includes coal, petroleum and any petroleum product and natural gas, for which there would be a $50.00 tax per ton.  Of course, in a Democrat's mind, that wouldn't be a tax on individuals, but a tax on the "terrible corporations" that, according to them, "are making grotesque profits."  Everyone knows that that $50 per ton would be passed on in higher costs to everyone - thus doing what they've done best for decades - hiding taxes in the form of higher prices.

     Then, he wants a 50¢ a gallon federal tax on gasoline, jet fuel, and petroleum-based kerosene.  That's just a start, because his plan calls for it to be "phased in" over five years - then, it would be adjusted for inflation (which means it'll grow even higher than the original 50¢ per gallon).  Added to the 43.2¢ per gallon that we already pay (18.2¢ federal and 25¢ state), our gas tax would grow to 93.2¢ per gallon.  That's pretty close to 30% of the price of a gallon of gas (if the beginning price was $2.679, and adding 50¢ per gallon to that price).  Oh, but that 50¢ per gallon does not include the $50 tax per ton on petroleum products that would be passed on in the form of higher prices, as well.

     And, you thought you were being "robbed" by the oil companies that were showing a 10% profit!  At least that's what the Democrats and main-stream media wants us to believe.

     Ah, but don't worry.  The tax on gasoline will go back to transportation - 60% to the roads, and 40% to a government-run mass transit system!

     That's not all!  If you are buying a home that is 3000 square feet or larger, they want to take a portion of your currently deductible interest in the form of a Carbon Tax - that is, if you haven't purchased "Carbon Offsets" to make your home "Carbon Neutral," or have actually made your home "Carbon Neutral."  The bill will allow you to claim 85% of your interest as a deduction against federal income tax if your home is under 3200 square feet - and decreases the larger your home is to 10% for homes between 4000 and 4199 square feet.  If you and the bank own anything larger, you can't deduct the interest.

     In case you haven't realized it yet, this proposed Carbon Tax is actually three taxes, and doesn't even include the additional taxes proposed under an "Emission Fee" that could be imposed.

     And, this isn't just new taxes - it's also more social engineering and control over our lives by an ever-expanding federal government.  It attacks our very right to choose through economic control.  Instead of coming out and just outlawing large cars, SUVs, RVs, etc., they want to tax us out of them.  With taxes of all kinds (from local to federal) eating up about half of our income now - these increased taxes take an even larger chunk of what we earn.  They want to tell us where we can live by taking away a deduction that has enabled people to offset part of the cost of their housing using the reduction in taxes afforded by the exemption.

     Dingell says, "this is a major undertaking, and it will not be easy to achieve, but we simply must accomplish this goal; our future and our children's futures depend on it."

     Yes, it is a major undertaking.  It is also one of the boldest moves made by Socialists that, for one reason or another, have been elected to Congress.  And, this, and many other proposals just like it, designed to re-distribute wealth and control our lives, are being worked on every day.

     The time of sitting back and taking what they dish out in Washington, D.C. must come to an end now if we are to survive as "the land of the free, and the home of the brave."