Charge it!

Once upon a time, when the Angry Tax Payer was a child, the Angry Tax Payer's parents encouragingly said, "The sky is the limit, little one. It's all yours...go for it!"

Funny thing was...when my parents told me that, I thought they were talking about job opportunities, life, fun, grandeur, and good ole fashion rock n' roll. But sadly, I was wrong and so were they. Little did we know that the same party who railed against the "tax and spend" Democrats would take all those great dreams away from us.

The sky's the limit became the motto of the Republican Party. Woefully, they were talking about creating their own sky high deficits and eliminating our country's assets. But they didn't share their secret with us, the little tax payers. Instead, they created a monster behind the closed doors of the White House and Congress. And this monster they created grew and grew each day. They fed this monster our tax dollars and he grew big and fat. In fact, this monster ATE our tax dollars as fast as Bush supporters' SUVs guzzle gas and as fast as the oil companies can reap in their profits.

Yes, this monster was BIG and UGLY and all the little angry tax payers' dollars continued to feed it.

Until one day, the expected yet unexpected happened. The monster had eaten so much that...that the truth eventually came out. It was only one word but it was a doozy. It escaped the monster's lips like a burp...

It was One word...

B A N K R U P T C Y

Treasury Secretary John W. Snow announced yesterday:

"United States could be unable to pay its bills in early 2006 unless Congress raises the government's borrowing authority, which is now capped at $8.18 trillion."

"At that time, unless the debt limit is raised or the Treasury Department takes authorized extraordinary actions, we will be unable to continue to finance government operations," Snow wrote

Oh my! The Republican party had indeed created a monster--a selfish, greedy monster who spent and gave to the rich; spent more and gave to the oil companies; spent even more and gave to themselves. Then the monster howled tearfully, "bankruptcy, bankruptcy."

And the little angry tax payers no longer got to hear, "The sky is the limit". Instead they suffered from nightmares for eternity. And in those nightmares they saw the Republican monsters running around looting from the poor and hotwiring it to their rich supporters, while at the same time screaming, "Charge it, charge it, charge it!"

Go Fish

As you probably realized by now, The Angry Tax Payer insists that my tax dollars be spent wisely. Now tell me this: Suz at the Democracy Cell Project points out that only two things are required to get a legal wiretap: NAME and REASON, so what the hell is Bush up too?.

And with the my hard earned tax dollars why can't the Bush administration meet those little demands that keep us safe from corrupt governments and dictatorships? If President Bush wants to go fishing, I know he can jump on a swanky cabin cruiser any time he choses. He can take his fancy boat out and cruise to the middle of the Atlantic and fish to his heart's content. Let King George rule over the fish in the Atlantic, not the people in America.

Look....The Angry Tax Payer likes fishing too. But when the Angry Tax Payer wants to go fishing, I grab my pole and my hook and a can of worms, then I take myself to the nearest fishing hole and fish away. Costs me a few bucks for the worms. That's my fishing expedition.


But the Republican fishing expedition costs us a lot more: it costs us our privacy, our tax dollars, and our democracy. President Bush refused to provide a name or a reason. And that is why the FISA court refused to give Bush's Justice Department their legal warrants.

Please tell the Congress to send President Bush a message:

Go Fish in your own pond!

Hat tip to Suz at the Democracy Cell Project for this information.

Shhhh...no eavesdropping or sneaking a peak....

Ok, the Angry Taxpayer is mad this time. Not just mad, but really incredibly irate! The Angry Tax Payer doesn't ask for much. I give my money out, and I expect certain things from my government...things like honesty and integrity. And I expect the government to follow the laws of the land, the same that you and I have to do!

Yet, today, I've discovered that my tax dollars were spent on spying on the United Nations just so Bush and his cohorts of neoCONS would know before the vote if they could start their illegal war. They wanted to know whose buttons to push and whose bells to ring.

They say they had a right to do this. However, did they have that right to violate the sanctity of U.N. member's homes? Absolutely not!

Meanwhile while Bush has sucked the tax payers money out during his cover-up and treasonous leaking of Valerie Plame's name to the press, he's admitted outright to using our tax dollars to by-pass the controls and accountability in FISA to spy on anyone he damn chooses.

Now the Angry Tax Payer also remembers during the Ominibus budget vote of 2004, a certain un-named Republican added a clause into it, hidden of course within the 1000 pages, that anyone could have their tax forms investigated without reason.

Hmmm...so ask yourself, "Why does the President spy without a warrant? Why did the President wire-tap the U.N. and was that legal as well as ethical? And Why does the President and the majority party want to look at Mr. and Mrs. Tax Payers forms?"

Oh...nothing wrong with any of that...

Yeh, right!

Here Kitty-Kitty

(Huge hat tip to the Pensito Review for this story. A huge thank you to Pam's House Blend for the heads up on this.) And a huge hat tip to firedoglake for bringing this matter of excessive Congressional oversight.

http://haloscan.com/tb/firedoglake/113569351605173639

What do you call a political party that thinks postage for a Presidential cat's fan club requires a full-on Congressional investigation, but a President who admits on national television to breaking Federal law, repeatedly, only merits some committee "oversight," and spotty oversight at that?Republicans.I am ashamed to say that I had forgotten Dan Burton's foray into "Socks-gate." And by the way, there was absolutely no substance to the fan club postage investigation, and Barbara Bush's dog Millie had a fan club, too. Maybe Burton's pet was jealous or something, or Dan Burton just had too much free time back then.But it does create a vivid contrast in reaction from Republicans these days, doesn't it? Hmmmm...let's see: misrepresent intelligence to Congress and the American public to get us into the Iraq war; out a CIA NOC for political payback; misrepresent war costs once we are there, so that Congress has to continually appropriate millions billions; spy on the American public without warrants, violating the Fourth Amendment and the Presidential requirements of Article II of the Constitution requiring the President to faithfully follow all laws and the FISA laws as established by Congress; and...well, there's more, but we all know that.Clearly that cat fanclub thing was way more important than actual, publicly admitted lawbreaking.(Huge hat tip to the Pensito Review for this story. A huge thank you to Pam's House Blend for the heads up on this.)
posted by ReddHedd @ 6:11 AM

No-No Spending

Picture our tax dollars in one giant barrel and the President and the Congress reaching into the barrel and throwing our money here or there...basically, whatever the flavor of the month is is where they're tossing our money.

But, unfortunately, there are big no-no's placing restrictions on where the money should go.

Republican no-no's:

1. No money to feed the poor.
2. No money to help the elderly with medicine.
3. No money to help people get health care insurance.
4. No tax dollars to be spent on sex ed that includes teaching birth control, uses birth control, or abortions.
5. No money for schools, unless they're private schools.
6. No money for small businesses.
7. No money for Katrina victims.
8. No money for Veterans
9. No money for social security
10. No money for paper-trail electronic voting systems.

The Democratic list of no-no's is much simpler to remember:

1. No money for torture.
2. No money handouts to the millianaires.
3. No more money given to businesses like Halliburton who bilk from the barrel and ask for more.
4. No money for business who use slave labor overseas and cut jobs here.
5. No money for environmental destruction and big polluters who endanger the health of our families.

Right On, right?!

Holy Canoli, what is an upstanding Congressman suppose to do when there is so many no-no's and so little agreement? This is why we pay our Congressmen the big-bucks, right? ...To make those hard choices.

Well, clearly, someone has to decide and fast! Why continue to let the politcal parties corner the market on these no-no's?

The Angry Taxpayer has come up with a better plan.

What's the plan? Hold on to your hat fellow tax payers, because this plan is so simple even the budget busting Republicans couldn't screw it up.

Create a checklist! Afterall, I'm sure there are many proud Americans more than happy to donate a dollar or two to torture, and many other proud Americans happy to donate the same to feeding the poor.

What makes this idea absolutely perfect is that it builds upon the same ideology that Republicans love...capitalism and competition.

Let each department compete for our tax dollars. Now that's the capitalist's way. Nod your head if you agree.

But.... let's hope that some of the departments resist giving out free samples.

Torture anyone?

The Constitution is just a little piece of paper, folks!

Mr. and Mrs. Angry Taxpayer are happy to note that President Bush and his fellow Republicans are hard at work discovering new and inventive ways to throw away the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, and (this is where they pay themselves double-time) they've created a handy-dandy little chart of propaganda to make throwing away the Constitution an acceptable thing, too.

Media Matters, thankfully, pulled out their pooper-scooper and cleaned up the Republican tp's for us. Take a look:

Top 12 media myths and falsehoods on the Bush administration's spying scandal

1. Timeliness necessitated bypassing the FISA court

2. Congress was adequately informed of -- and approved -- the administration's actions

3. Warrantless searches of Americans are legal under the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act

4. Clinton, Carter also authorized warrantless
searches of U.S. citizens

5. Only Democrats are concerned about the Bush
administration's secret surveillance

6. Debate is between those supporting civil liberties and those seeking to prevent terrorism

7. Bin Laden phone leak demonstrates how leak of spy operation could damage national security

8. Gorelick testimony proved Clinton asserted "the same authority" as Bush

9. Aldrich Ames investigation is example of Clinton administration bypassing FISA regulations

10. Clinton administration conducted domestic spying

11. Moussaoui case proved that FISA probable-cause standard impedes terrorism probes

12. A 2002 FISA review court opinion makes clear that Bush acted legally

Ladies and Gentleman, give the Republicans a hand! Whoooo hoooo!


What they've done is a miracle comparable to the size of Moses parting the Red Sea. They've made it acceptable to throw away Democracy while at the same time making all the little broke tax payers think they're doing them a favor.

Who needs democracy?

Certainly not Mr. And Mrs. Angry Taxpayer. We've often envisioned moving to a communist state. Thank you so very much, President Bush and your gang of thieves. Good news...you've simplified our lives. Now we can throw away our old 'to do' list and instead Mr. and Mrs. Angry Tax payer can rest and take it easy on easy street.

Thank you so much President Bush. I just can not say it enough!

Of course the Constitution is only, according to our new favorite President, "A piece of paper". What's not to agree with? Certainly it's true when he said, "It'd be easier living in a dictatorship..if I'm the dictator." Who cares that 230 years ago, we fought to free ourselves from a different King George. We're gonna be nice and safe under our new dictator.


Excuse me fellow taxpayers, as I must now go practice my bows before the new king...King George!





(photo credit: Daily Kos)

Vacation time ...at long last!

How sweet! Today, the day when most people want to be with their families opening gifts, smooching under the mistletoe, and sitting by the fire roasting chestnuts, President Bush decided to thank the troops for their service by going on vacation.

Interesting enough, while King George took off for his long awaited vacation, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld quit his day job and instead flew at tax payer's expense to Iraq to serve food in the soldiers' mess hall . One wonders how much Rummy was able to glean about the situation in Iraq from behind the food line there.

However, I'm sure there is a method to his madness. Perhaps instead of saying "Would you like gravy with your mash potatoes?" he is saying, "Pick a number between 1-2000 to indicate how many more Iraqis have been trained to take over the security of this nation..."

It could explain the constant barrage of misinformation given from the White House on the Iraq policy. Furthermore, who could argue that this job is much better suited to his skills and competency? Just think, if we only paid Rummy what he was worth, we could expect a refund on our taxes this year.

Yes, I'd really like to see better use of my tax dollars, and I presume you do to. The Angry Tax Payer thinks we need to look at the bottom line of expenses and expenditures when Bush and Rummy are in the White House. Seems our bills go up, our savings go down, and the oil barons get richer and richer. And sadly, our soldiers find themselves facing deadlier situations that correspond to the quicksand-like poll numbers this President clings to. Seems the more the numbers go down, the more Bush has to "stay the course" and be a "War President". So the incompetency endlessly continues taking away lives.

Yes, getting them out of the White House is a great thing for America and for the world at large.

Therefore, I intend to make sure their vacations becomes permanent. Thus, I'm starting a campaign called, "Save the deficit and Save an American Soldier. Impeach!"

Grab your megaphone and join me in this quest for the betterment of mankind.

NOW!

Question of the Day...

How many of our tax dollars has been spent to spy on Americans without a court order or a search warrent?