United Liberty
Deficit
Cutting Taxes = Increasing Revenue
Tue, 03/03/2009 - 7:22am | posted by Matt Chancey
Around 150 BC, Emperor Ching Ti came to power in China and immediately faced a major problem: his treasury was empty.
Taxes were very high, but no real revenue was coming in. That’s because the system of taxes at that time was an early form of income tax that centered on the government taking a large percentage of a farmer’s crops.
So Ching Ti did something bold and innovative: he cut taxes.
Overnight, taxes went from over 50% down to about 3%. Farmers, who had fled to the hills to escape draconian tax rates, now came home and began farming again. To make a long story short, Ching Ti’s greatest problem while governing was trying to keep all the grain in his barns from spoiling.
It seems that ancient Chinese history is good for more than just cutesy script on a fortune cookie.
Obama Making Deficit Problems Worse
Thu, 04/30/2009 - 2:10pm | posted by Jason Pye
Despite President Barack Obama’s denials, he is as responsible for the deficit as his predecessor and is actually making it worse:
Congress controls the purse strings, not the president, and it was under Democratic control for Obama’s last two years as Illinois senator. Obama supported the emergency bailout package in President George W. Bush’s final months - a package Democratic leaders wanted to make bigger.To be sure, Obama opposed the Iraq war, a drain on federal coffers for six years before he became president. But with one major exception, he voted in support of Iraq war spending.
The economy has worsened under Obama, though from forces surely in play before he became president, and he can credibly claim to have inherited a grim situation.
Still, his response to the crisis goes well beyond “one-time charges.”
Bailout Bucks: Soon to Be Worth More than the USD?
Mon, 02/09/2009 - 2:02pm | posted by Austin Wilkes
With all the talks of trillion dollar Congressional spending programs and multi-trillion dollar FED lending vehicles (and with no apparent end in site), FreedomWorks (inspired by UGA College Republicans) had the wonderful idea to design “Bailout Bucks”, mocking the “endless-spending” Congress.
You can find a PDF with the full image files here at Freedomworks. They are encouraging individuals to print and hand them out to friends (or anyone who will listen for that matter). I also encourage readers to visit and join the new FreedomWorks site.
I.O.U.S.A.: Byte-Sized - The 30 Minute Version
Sat, 01/10/2009 - 7:34pm | posted by Michael Orion Powell
A great documentary on the fiscal irresponsibility of the United States government.
Barack Obama Delivers Economic Speech
Thu, 01/08/2009 - 5:53pm | posted by Michael Orion Powell
Here’s a short clipshow of President-elect Obama’s excellent economic speech. I really like his candor about the deficit (which has been talked around for years) and his channelling Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s famous line about “fear itself.” Huffington Post has the text of the entire speech.
Ron Paul: You Can’t Balance The Budget On The Back Of Sick People
Thu, 11/06/2008 - 5:38pm | posted by United Liberty Staff
Ron Paul is the true compassionate conservative. Cut oversees military spending before cutting medical care for Americans.
Rep. Cooper: “Government Is Misrepresenting Its True Deficit”
Wed, 10/08/2008 - 4:15pm | posted by Austin Wilkes
Rep. Tim Cooper tells Shepard Smith of Fox News the truth about America’s financial situation. He mentions several times the “Financial Report of the United States Federal Government”. You can download the fiscal 2007 Report HERE - keep in mind the financial situation has deterioated rapidly since then.
