If President Bush’s 2001/2003 tax cuts are made permanent here’s what will happen: 1) the Joint Committee on Taxation and Congressional Budget office estimates a direct cost of $3.6 trillion over the next 10 years. The interest payment on this ‘new’ debt would be $700 billion per year. 2) Once the tax cuts are fully in effect, their annual cost (not including debt service) will be eight times what the federal government spend last year on K-12 and vocational education and about 10 times what it spent on hospital and medical care for veterans. 3) In today’s terms, this amount also exceeds the combined 2007 budgets of the Departments of Education, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Veterans’ Affairs, State, Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Somebody stop the madness…just say no! (http://www.cbpp.org/1-31-07tax.htm)

Multi-billionaire Warren Buffett has been complaining for years that his taxes are too low. In June 2007, he said he was taxed at only 17.7% last year on his $46 million in income, while his secretary paid 30% of her $60,000. “The taxation system has tilted toward the rich and away from the middle class in the last 10 years,” Buffett, the nation’s third richest man, said.

Buffett did an informal survey of federal taxes paid by his own office staff, and the average was 32.9%, compared to his 17.7%. “There wasn’t anybody in the office, from the receptionists on, that paid as low a tax rate,” Buffett stated, noting that “I have no tax planning, I don’t have an accountant, I don’t have tax shelters.”

“It’s not right,” one of Buffett’s receptionist’s said. Hmmm….

The last four years (as MAPS President and Teacher) have been a huge education for me. Here are a few things I’ve learned: 1) Teaching is the hardest job I’ve ever had. 2) “No Child Left Behind” just doesn’t work. 3) Standardized testing suggests that there’s a ’standard student’ and - based on my experience - that’s just not the case.

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In the 1980 Presidential debates, Ronald Reagan asked the memorable question, “Are you better off (now) than you were four years ago?” Well here we are 25 years later and as our local and national elections unfold I believe the same question deserves to be asked and answered once again.

If you’re not better off, you’re not alone. Consider this: 1) The share of national income taken down by the wealthiest 1% rose from 14.6% in 2003 to 17.4% in 2005. 2) The real household median income in 2006 was 2.2% lower than it was in 1999. 3) A young person in their 30’s today will make 12% less than than their parents 30 years ago. (Sources, Newsweek and Vanity Fair)

Are the rich getting richer? You bet!

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22% of all Montanans don’t have healthcare coverage. 25% of employed Montanans don’t have healthcare coverage. 50% of all Montanan personal bankruptcies are a result of healthcare related events and personal bankruptcies are at an all time high.

It is broke and we must fix it.