Kansas’ Congressman Tim Huelskamp must be crazy! He refuses to raises taxes on the majority of those who can pay and then makes the poorest 79% of Americans pay for this oversight or stupidity?
Dear Kevin,
I hope you and your family enjoyed the Independence Day weekend. As I mentioned in last week’s email, I took part in two parades – one in Hays and another in Hutchinson. It was great to see many familiar and new faces! What an honor to serve as your representative in the greatest country in the world!
Tackling America’s Debt & Deficits
Likely this week you read or saw the news about the discussions (more like arguments) taking place on the debt limit. Though I am not a part of the formal negotiations taking place – they involve only the President and House and Senate leadership – I do feel strongly about what is being discussed and hope that the solution is one that gets to the root of the problem: overspending.
The one key approach that must be considered is “Cut, Cap, Balance.” Cut the deficit this year. Limit future spending with enforceable budget caps. And PASS a Balanced Budget Amendment through Congress…and then I might consider a debt ceiling increase. I am joined in my support by dozens of other Members of Congress in both the House and the Senate. I discussed this idea on MSNBC on Thursday morning:
Congressman Huelskamp on MSNBC
Click image to view MSNBC interview
Taking on any more debt must be accompanied with a clear, concise, and actionable plan to make sure we never find ourselves in this spot again. I look forward to the House voting on a balanced budget amendment later this month, and am excited to hear that there is growing support for it in the Senate. 49 of the 50 states have to balance their budgets; why shouldn’t Washington do the same?
Washington’s inability to tackle its fiscal problems has consequences. This failure is probably felt most by the more than 14 million Americans who are out of work – and hundreds of thousands more who have quit looking. On Thursday, the Labor Department announced that for the 13th straight week, more than 400,000 new unemployment claims were filed. On Friday, we learned that the unemployment rate grew to 9.2%. Only when Washington’s spenders, excessive borrowers, regulators, and bureaucrats undo the harmful environment for job creation they have established, will American entrepreneurs have the confidence they need in order to hire.
Funding the Department of Defense
In addition to the ongoing debates taking place on raising the debt limit, the House considered the 2012 Department of Defense Authorization bill. I offered a successful amendment that will prevent the U.S. Navy from carrying out an April 2011 internal directive that would allow chaplains to perform same-sex marriages on military bases in states where same-sex marriages are legal.
Of course many problems would arise if this directive were allowed to prevail. One, the military is supposed to be about uniformity and conformity, yet this directive allows for same-sex marriage depending on where the military base is located. Two, the religious freedom of chaplains is at stake: what about those who refuse to perform same-sex marriages? Three, when “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was repealed last year, Americans were told that federal laws would prevail; this law allows liberal state laws to supersede federal laws on military bases.
Congressman Huelskamp on House Floor
Click the video to view the introduction of the amendment.
Upcoming Work Week Schedule & Satellite Office Hours
On Monday, July 18, 2011, I will host two town hall meetings. If you are in or around these towns, please take the time to stop by and share your thoughts:
9:00am – 10:00am
Fowler Town Hall (Meade County)
Fowler Senior Center – 310 N Church, Fowler
11:00am – 12:00pm
Dodge City Town Hall (Ford County)
The Depot Theater Company, Dining Room – 201 E Wyatt Earp Blvd, Dodge City
The House will now be in session July 19-22, meaning that the town halls originally scheduled in St. Francis, Atwood, and Seneca that week will be rescheduled for a later date and time.
In addition to town hall meetings, my staff will be hosting satellite office hours in a number of communities in the next few weeks. During these satellite office hours, constituent services representatives will be available to hear Kansans’ opinions, ideas, and concerns about issues being debated in Washington. They will also be available to help constituents who need assistance with federal agencies and programs, including Social Security, Medicare, Veterans’ Affairs, and visas.
The full schedule is also available at http://huelskamp.house.gov/events.
Guests in the Office
Thanks to those who stopped by the D.C. office this week to meet with staff and me, including: Janet Splitter, Executive Director of ElderCare Inc. in Great Bend, Linda Black, Food Service Supervisor of ElderCare, Inc., and Michelle Morgan, Executive Director of the Northwest KS Area Agency on Aging, who were here representing the National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services Programs; Randy Crawford, Aegis, from Lenexa, discussing veteran-owned small business issues; and five students here as part of the National Civic Youth Leadership Conference: Jennifer Crist, Lincoln; Jena Ernsting, Hays; Lauren Mountford, Colby; Kevin VonFeldt, Larned; and Larissa Liggett, Tescott.
Sincerely,
Tim Huelskamp
Member of Congress
PS: If we are not friends on Facebook or do you not follow me on Twitter, please sign up (above) to follow my activities on a daily basis!
After reading that TH nonsense above-
http://www.dccc.org/pages/offthetable
Kevin –
Did you miss my email last night? Take a look below.
Republicans want to cut Social Security and Medicare to pay for tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires. This is unacceptable.
In just over 12 hours, more than 75,000 people have signed our petition standing with House Democrats against Speaker Boehner and Republicans’ disgraceful plan.
Help us reach 100,000 signers by the end of the day: Sign our petition and join House Democrats in telling Republicans that Social Security and Medicare cuts are off the table.
http://www.dccc.org/pages/offthetable
With your help, we can make sure Republicans don’t take away the benefits that Americans have earned.
Robby
————————————————————————————
From: Robby Mook
Sent: Thursday, July 7th, 2011 7:31pm
To: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Subject: Off the table
————————————————————————————
Kevin –
I need your urgent help. Republicans are gearing up to enact their radical plan to balance the budget on the backs of seniors, women and people with disabilities.
At this moment, Speaker Boehner is crafting a deficit deal that would gut Medicare and Social Security, while slashing benefits for seniors and the middle class in order to make sure he protects tax breaks for millionaires. This is unacceptable and House Democrats will not stand for this.
We need to show our strength on this issue with one, unified voice — and time is critical.
Sign our petition right now and join me in telling Republicans that Social Security and Medicare cuts are off the table. We refuse to let Republicans balance the budget on the backs of seniors, women and people with disabilities while supporting tax breaks for millionaires.
Kevin, time is running short. If we don’t stand up against these radical cuts right away, decades of progress could be lost.
Add your name now >>
Robby Mook
DCCC Executive Director
Some politicians are trying to default on the American Dream
Dear Kevin,
http://act.truemajorityaction.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=236
Wars and tax cuts for the rich created this deficit crisis
Obama and Congressional leaders
Tell them: if you want to cut the deficit: tax the rich and end the war, leave the rest alone.
add your voice
For years, Washington politicians have run up the national debt with two unpaid-for wars and tax breaks for millionaires. But now that everyone is talking about how to reduce the debt, they want the middle class pay for it by cutting programs we paid for and depend on like Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare.1
That’s not just wrong, it’s an outrageous attack on the American Dream. And we need your help to stop it.
Congressional leaders are gathering on Sunday for another round of deficit talks, and the word is that Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare is on the chopping block, while tax cuts for millionaires are not.2 But no debt deal can pass without support from Congress, and that gives us a chance to change the debate, if you act fast:
Email your Representative right now and tell them that when it comes to reducing the deficit, they need to start by getting rid of tax breaks for millionaires and cutting Pentagon spending, not social programs that hardworking Americans have already paid for.
Programs like Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare didn’t contribute signifigantly to the deficit and politicians shouldn’t be able to treat them like a piggy bank so they can keep us at war or protect their wealthy donors. But that’s exactly what Republicans in Congress have proposed. And unless somebody speaks up, they might get their way.
And this is where you, and your Representative, come in. No deal can get done without approval in the House of Representatives. And that vote is expected to be close, very close. So in the next 72 hours, leaders in both parties will be checking with every member of Congress to see where they stand. We can win if even a handful of our Representatives tell their leadership that a deficit deal HAS to include taxing millionaires and reducing spending on war and weapons – but CANNOT include cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
Will your Representative be one of them? The only way to know is to ask: Click here to tell your Representative to tax the rich and cut Pentagon spending, not vital social programs.
Sincerely,
Drew Hudson
USAction/TrueMajority
1 – http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/07/08/debt-deal-could-rewrite-2012-political-calculus/?hp
2 – http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/07/08/7041128-first-thoughts-a-crucial-72-ho
Missouri congressmen need attention, too.
Dear Representative Billy Long,
I know that your party’s leaders are meeting with the President this Sunday for more talks on the nation’s deficit and debt ceiling.
I am outraged to hear that while important social programs are on the table for discussion tax cuts for millionaires, pentagon Spending and the cost of our two wars (and Libya) are not.
So I’m writing to ask that you contact your caucus leaders and tell them that you will only accept a deal to raise the nations debt ceiling if:
1) It includes new revenue from raising taxes on the rich and big corporations;
2) It cuts wasteful and unneeded Pentagon spending on weapons and wars we do not want; AND
3) It does NOT include cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
Thank you and I look forward to your reply.
Here is what too many people, especially Republican leaders and reps don’t get.
Dear MoveOn member,
66% of Americans think we should cut the deficit by raising taxes on the rich.1 Less than 4% think we should start by cutting Social Security and Medicare.2
In a working democracy, these would be settled questions. And yet, yesterday, reports broke that President Obama offered up cuts to Social Security and other vital programs as part of a deal on the deficit. All while Republicans refuse to even consider raising taxes on the rich.
It’s clear that we’ll never make the economy work for regular folks until our democracy does too—until we take the power to make decisions away from corporate lobbyists and the super-rich and put it back in the hands of the the people.
So today, as part of our Contract for the American Dream, we’re looking for ideas that will help us build a working democracy. To prime the pump, we made a great, funny video about one of the most important tools regular folks have used over the years to make their voices heard: unions.
Check out the video, then help identify the best ideas for making our democracy work for all of us.
Watch the video and rate ideas!
Corporations and the super-rich are doing everything they can to silence and overwhelm our voices in the workplace, in our communities, and at the ballot box. They’re spending huge sums of money to buy elections and hire lobbyists, pushing anti-immigrant legislation in the states, making it harder for minorities to vote, and trying to block the rights of workers and unions to organize nationwide.
Together it all adds up to a broad attack on our right to have our voices heard and ultimately have control over our economy and our democracy.
All week we’ve been looking for the best ideas to include in the new Contract for the American Dream—ideas for fixing our economy and uniting our movement. The response has been amazing and so far we’ve collected more than 13,000 ideas for creating good jobs and making sure we all pay our share. Together, we’ve rated those ideas more than 3 million times!
Today it’s time to focus on solutions that will make sure that we, the people, call the shots in the economy—and that no one gets left out.
Can you add your ideas, and then help find the very best ones by rating a few ideas from others?
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=210937&id=28689-4797084-MmW7tFx&t=4
Thanks for all you do.
–Justin, Tate, Robin, Elena, and the rest of the team
Sources:
1. “More Blame Wars than Domestic Spending or Tax Cuts for Nation’s Debt,” Pew Research Center, June 7, 2011.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=210934&id=28689-4797084-MmW7tFx&t=5
2. “Poll: To Reduce Deficit, Most Americans say Tax the Rich More,” cbsnews.com, January 3, 2011.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=210872&id=28689-4797084-MmW7tFx&t=6
Call the White House and tell President Obama not to cave to Republicans.
It’s time to draw a line in the sand
Protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid
Speak out before it’s too late. Click here for the number to call and a sample script.
Take action now!
Dear Kevin,
According to the New York Times1 and the Washington Post2, President Obama has offered Republicans a budget deficit deal that would lower the deficit with trillions in cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid — programs that had previously been off the table.
This is disastrously wrong.
Republican pundit David Frum had it right when he said, “The debt ceiling negotiations have amounted to a succession of retreats and concessions by President Obama.”3
We can’t be silent and allow President Obama to cave to Republicans, and put some of the most important and successful programs in our country on the chopping block.
House Democrats and most Democratic Senators have already said they will not go along. It is not too late.
Call the White House and tell President Obama: Protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Click here for the number to call and a sample script.
The debt limit negotiations don’t have to play out this way. There’s absolutely no reason why negotiations about the federal deficit had to take place in the context of looming financial catastrophe if the debt ceiling isn’t raised.
By insisting that the debt ceiling vote be tied to long-term deficit reduction, the Republicans simply took the financial health of this country hostage. And rather than repudiating that strategy or calling the Republicans out for it, President Obama responded as though he could win the Republicans over through appeasement.
We are now seeing the results of this negotiating failure. And the best thing we can do right now is speak out to prevent President Obama from making a catastrophic mistake.
Call the White House and tell President Obama: Protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Click here for the number to call and a sample script.
The simple fact of the matter is that Republicans are willing to tank the economy for their perceived electoral benefit. And they’re willing to drive our economy into another recession rather than raise taxes on the Koch brothers. If anything we should be expanding these programs, not cutting them during this time of extreme economic duress.
President Obama needs to stop trying to play the reasonable negotiator when the group he’s negotiating with does not have the best interests of the country in mind. If the New York Times story is true, President Obama will enable Republicans to push through a radical agenda to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid — a feat that even George W. Bush couldn’t pass despite a Republican Congress.
President Obama needs to stand up for something other than “the spirit of bipartisan compromise” with the most extreme and irresponsible elements of the Republican Party. Tell President Obama he needs to draw a line in the sand, for his own sake and for the good of the country.
Call the White House and tell President Obama: Protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Click here for the number to call and a sample script.
Thank you for speaking out.
Matt Lockshin, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action from Working Assets
Footnotes:
1 “Obama to Push for Wider Deal With G.O.P. on Deficit Cuts,” Carl Hulse and Mark Landler, New York Times, July 6, 2011.
2 “In debt talks, Obama offers Social Security cuts,” Lori Montgomery, Washington Post, July 6, 2011
3 “Obama plays nice, GOP turns tough,” David Frum, CNN, July 5, 2011.
http://act.credoaction.com/call/report/?r=8401&cp_id=127&id=23830-2109370-fJWIbax&tg=753
Here is the phone number.
MORE BAD NEWS
The Hedge Fund Handout
Jul 7, 2011 | By ThinkProgress War Room
GOP Tax Giveaway of the Day: The Hedge Fund Loophole
The default crisis talks seem to have accelerated today, after what President Obama described as a “constructive” lunchtime meeting with congressional leaders from both parties. The two sides are scheduled to reconvene at the White House again on Sunday.
Here’s the lowdown one of the most costly and pernicious giveaways in the tax code. Eliminating this giveaway to billionaires should be at the top of anyone who is serious about deficit reduction’s list.
WHAT: The “carried interest” or hedge fund loophole
WHO BENEFITS: The managers of financial partnerships, such as hedge funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds, and real estate funds
HOW IT WORKS: Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times, in a must-read column, explains:
These fund managers are compensated mostly with a performance bonus of 20 percent or more of the profits they make. Under this carried interest loophole, that 20 percent is eligible to be taxed at the long-term capital gains rate (if the fund’s underlying assets are held long enough) of just 15 percent rather than the regular personal income rate of 35 percent.
This tax loophole is also intellectually vacuous. The performance fee is a return on the manager’s labor, not his or her capital, so there’s no reason to give it preferential capital gains treatment.
HOW MUCH IT WASTES: More than $20 BILLION over 10 years
WHY IT’S OUTRAGEOUS: A hedge fund manager’s secretary is likely to be paying a higher tax rate than his or her billionaire boss
DINNER TABLE FAST FACTS:
* Ending the hedge fund handout for just the top 25 richest hedge fund managers alone would raise an astonishing $4 BILLION.
* It would take the combined incomes of 441,000 middle class families to equal the income of just the top 25 richest hedge fund managers.
IN ONE SENTENCE: Instead of slashing Social Security and ending Medicare, it’s time for billionaires to start paying their fair share.
Evening Brief: Important Stories That You May Have Missed
Republican political operative Dick Morris has been promoting a recent poll showing that Obama would get only 56 percent of the Jewish vote, but Washington Jewish Week’s Adam Kredo is questioning the credibility of Morris’s poll, observing, “the poll is a completely partisan exercise devoid of scientific objectivity.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) claims the Obama administration’s decision to transfer a Somali terrorism suspect to New York is not “what’s best for the country” and says the detainee should have been transferred to Guantanamo Bay and interrogated.
Daniel R. DePetris writes on the Washington Note that while Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi is under pressure from NATO airstrikes, he may yet have the upper-hand if he can maintain a stalemate as NATO countries face backlash in the form of domestic public opinion souring on the NATO military mission.
While Washington toys with draconian budget cuts, the majority of Americans — including 50 percent of Republicans — say it is more important to keep Social Security and Medicare benefits rather than cut them to reduce the deficit.
A new bipartisan study highlights the overwhelming health and financial benefits of Medicaid, which undermines the GOP’s claim that people would be better off uninsured than on Medicaid.
House Republicans launch an anti-Kagan witchhunt to throw up a smokescreen around Justice Thomas’ many, many ethics scandals.
Bobby Jindal likens women who receive abortions to criminals.
No one has any idea what’s going on with the debt ceiling negotiations.
And finally, Republican presidential hopeful Tim Pawlenty gushed that he, too, is one of Lady Gaga’s “little monsters.”
Notable Quotable: Senator DeMint (R-SC) Says He’s Willing To Risk ‘Serious Disruptions’ To The Economy
Notable Quotable: GOP Rep. Says House Republicans Have Privately Discussed Impeaching Obama Over Debt Ceiling
Notable Quotable: House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi
“I also want to have full clarity about where House Democrats stand. We do not support cuts in benefits for Social Security and Medicare. Any discussion of Medicare or Social Security should be on its own table. I have said that before. When we take a look at Social Security, then look at it on its own table, but do not consider Social Security a piggy bank for giving tax cuts to the wealthiest people in our country. We are not going to balance the budget on the backs of America’s seniors, women and people with disabilities.“
Suggestions for these lists can be sent to jimobrien48@gmail.com. Thanks to Rusti Eisenberg, Maia Ramnath, and Rosalyn Baxandall for suggestions for the following list.
“Why the War Machine Keeps on Running”
http://www.counterpunch.org/spinney07052011.html
By Franklin C. Spinney, CounterPunch.org, posted July 5
“Warring Ambitions”
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-appleby-war-powers-20110703,0,3517152.story
By Joyce Appleby, Los Angeles Times, posted July 3
On the Founding Fathers and the power to declare war; the author is a professor of history emerita at UCLA
“Waiting for Godot on the Gaza Flotilla”
http://www.opednews.com/Quicklink/Mark-Levine–Waiting-for-in-Best_Web_OpEds-110701-476.html
By Mark LeVine, Op-Ed News, posted July 1
The author teaches history at the University of California, Irvine
“King George III Won: Happy Fourth of July”
http://warisacrime.org/content/king-george-iii-won-happy-fourth-july
By David Swanson, War Is a Crime.org, posted June 30
“The Militarized Surrealism of Barack Obama: Signs of the Great American Unraveling”
http://www.tomdispatch.com/post/175412
By Tom Engelhardt, TomDispatch.com, posted June 30
“Isolationism: Behind the Myth, a Usable Past”
http://hnn.us/articles/140293.html
By Michael H. Hunt, History News Network, posted June 29
The author is a professor of history emeritus at the University of North Carolina
“On the Mend? America Comes to Its Senses”
http://www.tomdispatch.com/post/175410
By Andrew J. Bacevich, TomDispatch.com, posted June 28
The author teaches history and international relations at Boston University
“Sacred Mantras”
http://www.counterpunch.org/avnery06282011.html
By Uri Avnery, CounterPunch.org, posted June 28
“The Undoing of Libya”
http://www.counterpunch.org/prashad06272011.html
By Vijay Prashad, CounterPunch.org, posted June 27
The author teaches history at Trinity College
“Finally, the Age of Western Intervention Is Over”
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/john-kampfner-finally-the-age-of-western-intervention-is-over-2303248.html
By John Kampfner, The Independent, posted June 27
December 20, 2012
Dear Mr. Stoda,
Thank you for taking the time to contact my office regarding what is commonly referred to as “the sequester” — or automatic spending reductions negotiated last year during the debt ceiling compromise.
As you may know, on August 2, 2011 President Obama signed the Budget Control Act (also known as the “debt deal”) which raised the statutory debt ceiling limit in conjunction with a variety of measures designed to reduce the budget deficit. One of those measures was the creation of the Super Committee which was charged with identifying $1.2 trillion in cuts over the FY2012-FY2021 period. However, the Super Committee failed to come to an agreement. As a result, $1.2 trillion in automatic spending reductions were triggered and will begin January 2013. The cuts are divided between discretionary defense and nondefense spending. Defense programs will face a 10 percent cuts ($0.8 trillion), nondefense programs will face a 8 percent cuts ($0.7 trillion) and ! mandatory spending will be cut by less than $0.2 trillion.
While serious spending cuts need to be made to the federal budget, I did not support the Budget Control Act and have taken tough votes to reduce spending. The across the board spending cuts alone will not solve our federal budget crisis. To balance the budget our tax policy must be reformed. Since taking office in 2011, I have hosted over 140 in-person town hall meetings and one of the overwhelming themes I hear is the need to throw out the tax code and make it fairer and flatter for everyone. A patchwork approach will not close loopholes and the inevitable complexities of the tax code. For this reason, I support and have cosponsored the Fair Tax Act. For too long, families and businesses have been unduly burdened by an outdated code and it is time for that to c! hange.
Likewise, we must scrutinize one of the core drivers of Washington’s $16 trillion in debt — entitlement spending. Medicare, Social Security, and Medicaid are projected to nearly double spending in the next ten years alone and are on track to bankrupt the country unless action is taken. To secure a fiscally-sound future for our children and grandchildren, entitlement spending must be scrutinized and reformed. However, I believe the commitments made to our seniors, those less fortunate, and individuals with disabilities must be honored.
In May the House of Representatives passed the Sequester Replacement Reconciliation Act (H.R. 5652). I supported this legislation to replace some of these crippling defense spending cuts from going into effect. Instead, it puts in place a series of alternative cuts to federal programs. While the House has already passed this fiscally-responsible alternative, President Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid have ignored it.
According to my calculations using data from the Congressional Budget Office, the United States will once again reach its debt ceiling and run out of borrowing authority as soon as January 2013. It is time for the White House and politicians of both parties to put forward some real solutions to combat the looming fiscal abyss our country is facing. We cannot tax and spend our way to prosperity. It is time for Washington to stop trying to live beyond its means. It will involve some tough budgetary decisions, but time is running out.
Again, thank you for taking the time to contact me. If you have not already, I encourage you to take a moment to find me on Facebook (facebook.com/congressmanhuelskamp), follow my personal updates on Twitter (twitter.com/CongHuelskamp) and check out my latest speeches and media appearances on YouTube (youtube.com/CongressmanHuelskamp).
Sincerely,
Tim Huelskamp
Member of Congress
P.S. If you are interested in additional information regarding my work in Congress, visit my website (http://huelskamp.house.gov/subscribe) and sign up to receive my weekly newsletter.
Why then did the tea partiers like Huelskamp not accept for even consideration the Boehnart offer.