Thank you Mr. President, for bringing up the issue of fairness. I’m sure that’s important to many people. One curious thing, though, with regard to the application of “fairness” it seems that all the recommendations you have, are decided by the government. Who decides what is fair?
Here’s some suggestions:
The average Federal employee can be paid no more than the average American employee, currently $42K a yr. Wouldn’t that be fair? And the highest amount paid to any retired Federal employee should be no more than the highest Social Security monthly amount. Wouldn’t that be fair?
In the past few years, average Americans have lost ten percent of their income. All Federal employees shall receive ten percent pay cuts, and only receive increases when the average American earns more. Isn’t that fair? After all, how can the government hope to get more money from taxpayers who are earning less?
Working middle class Americans can’t leave a job for months or years, look for a new job, and still get paid. Why should government employees be able to run for any federal office while holding and being paid for another elected office?
No employee in any Federal or state job should receive more than one pension. That sounds fair.
The Senate hasn’t passed a budget in 1,000 days. They should lose their paychecks and all fringe benefits until they pass a budget. Isn’t that fair?
No one who worked in Congress can ever work as a lobbyist. Including staffers. Sounds fair to me.
Everyone who travels on Air Force One must pay their own way, be they friends of the President, First Lady, or staffers. That’s eminently fair. No American flies for free. And they must undergo full scanning and/or patdowns like all Americans. Fair is fair. If they do not pay a full amount to be determined by the CBO, their flight is counted as income and they must pay income tax on that amount, just as everyone else does for gifts. No one who flies on Air Force One can be involved in campaigning, fund raising, or Federal contracts.
The First Lady shouldn’t use any tax dollars for personal items such as clothes, 30 personal assistants. She should be limited to two assistants. Any more, they come out of the First Family’s paycheck. If she buys clothes or receives them as gifts, those items count, at full retail value, as income. She must pay income tax on that just as all other Americans do. The First Family must stop taking vacations and living lavishly on the taxes of people who lost their jobs and homes. That’s only fair.
No government worker at any level, state, Federal, or local should be part of a union with collective bargaining that makes political contributions to politicians who vote on their contracts. SEIU, NEA, AFSCME, and the other unions should not be allowed to contribute to any political campaign or party. These unions take money from taxpayers and use it to pay off politicians to give them pay/benefit raises. That gives them more say than the American taxpayers. Is that fair? It would be illegal for private employees to give money to their boss, in order to persuaded the boss to give them a pay raise. Fair is fair.
Congressional Representatives should not be allowed to invest in any interests for which they have a vote.
The President and politicians can no longer use “moral extortion” to dodge tax cuts. Such as “the poor will suffer,” the homeless will suffer, etc. In reality it’s the rich Federal workers who will suffer. The taxpayers decide what is politically correct, not the government.
It’s only fair: it’s change we can believe in. It’s only fair that voters decide what changes should be made. The Federal government has demonstrated a complete and reckless disregard for the financial needs of the average American family.
Michael Bargo Jr. January 25, 2012
http://www.sodahead.com/united-states/good-idea-why-dont-we-have-a-national-conversation-about-whats-fair-mr-president/question-2417363/
Did you know most Democrats are Communists?
Rep. Allen West said he’s heard that
almost half of all the Democrats in Congress are secretly part of the
Communist Party. West told almost 100 Floridians in Palm City on Tuesday
that “he’s heard” as many as 80 Democrats in Congress are members of
the Communist Party.
This is the list from 2010 of the Democratic Socialist Party of America
We
are socialists because we reject an international economic order
sustained by private profit, alienated labor, race and gender
discrimination, environmental destruction, and brutality and violence in
defense of the status quo.
We are socialists because we share a vision of a humane
international social order based both on democratic planning and market
mechanisms to achieve equitable distribution of resources, meaningful
work, a healthy environment, sustainable growth, gender and racial
equality, and non-oppressive relationships.
Co-Chairs
Hon. Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-07)
Hon. Lynn Woolsey (CA-06)
Vice Chairs
Hon. Diane Watson (CA-33)
Hon. Sheila Jackson-Lee (TX-18)
Hon. Mazie Hirono (HI-02)
Hon. Dennis Kucinich (OH-10)
Senate Members
Hon. Bernie Sanders (VT)
House Members
Hon. Neil Abercrombie (HI-01)
Hon. Tammy Baldwin (WI-02)
Hon. Xavier Becerra (CA-31)
Hon. Madeleine Bordallo (GU-AL)
Hon. Robert Brady (PA-01)
Hon. Corrine Brown (FL-03)
Hon. Michael Capuano (MA-08)
Hon. André Carson (IN-07)
Hon. Donna Christensen (VI-AL)
Hon. Yvette Clarke (NY-11)
Hon. William “Lacy” Clay (MO-01)
Hon. Emanuel Cleaver (MO-05)
Hon. Steve Cohen (TN-09)
Hon. John Conyers (MI-14)
Hon. Elijah Cummings (MD-07)
Hon. Danny Davis (IL-07)
Hon. Peter DeFazio (OR-04)
Hon. Rosa DeLauro (CT-03)
Rep. Donna F. Edwards (MD-04)
Hon. Keith Ellison (MN-05)
Hon. Sam Farr (CA-17)
Hon. Chaka Fattah (PA-02)
Hon. Bob Filner (CA-51)
Hon. Barney Frank (MA-04)
Hon. Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11)
Hon. Alan Grayson (FL-08)
Hon. Luis Gutierrez (IL-04)
Hon. John Hall (NY-19)
Hon. Phil Hare (IL-17)
Hon. Maurice Hinchey (NY-22)
Hon. Michael Honda (CA-15)
Hon. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (IL-02)
Hon. Eddie Bernice Johnson (TX-30)
Hon. Hank Johnson (GA-04)
Hon. Marcy Kaptur (OH-09)
Hon. Carolyn Kilpatrick (MI-13)
Hon. Barbara Lee (CA-09)
Hon. John Lewis (GA-05)
Hon. David Loebsack (IA-02)
Hon. Ben R. Lujan (NM-3)
Hon. Carolyn Maloney (NY-14)
Hon. Ed Markey (MA-07)
Hon. Jim McDermott (WA-07)
Hon. James McGovern (MA-03)
Hon. George Miller (CA-07)
Hon. Gwen Moore (WI-04)
Hon. Jerrold Nadler (NY-08)
Hon. Eleanor Holmes-Norton (DC-AL)
Hon. John Olver (MA-01)
Hon. Ed Pastor (AZ-04)
Hon. Donald Payne (NJ-10)
Hon. Chellie Pingree (ME-01)
Hon. Charles Rangel (NY-15)
Hon. Laura Richardson (CA-37)
Hon. Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-34)
Hon. Bobby Rush (IL-01)
Hon. Linda Sánchez (CA-47)
Hon. Jan Schakowsky (IL-09)
Hon. José Serrano (NY-16)
Hon. Louise Slaughter (NY-28)
Hon. Pete Stark (CA-13)
Hon. Bennie Thompson (MS-02)
Hon. John Tierney (MA-06)
Hon. Nydia Velazquez (NY-12)
Hon. Maxine Waters (CA-35)
Hon. Mel Watt (NC-12)
Hon. Henry Waxman (CA-30)
Hon. Peter Welch (VT-AL)
Hon. Robert Wexler (FL-19)