Fwd: MyHeritage.org: Big Government in Pictures

April 16, 2010 | By Amanda J. Reinecker Big Government in Pictures Federal spending is unsustainable, yet government continues to spend money faster than it can tax it from you and me. As a result, America is facing record deficits. Every American taxpayer should be concerned about this because it directly impacts them. Taxes are the primary government funding source. If government spending increases – which it is – taxes must, therefore, increase – and they are. The budget, spending and taxes are all complex subjects. Explanations are typically confined to dense, scholarly publications by Ph.D.'s and economic theorists, which are very important, but difficult to understand. That's why we're proud to introduce The Heritage Foundation's 2010 Budget Chart Book – a user-friendly way to learn about the federal budget, spending and taxes in pictures. Check it out! For example, our charts on entitlement programs, such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, illustrate just how unsustainable and exhaustive these programs are on our economy. Heritage's Nicola Moore, assistant director of the Thomas A. Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies, explains: As Entitlements Chart 2 shows, these programs will double in size in a few decades. But Chart 10 explains spending cuts alone can't pay for entitlements, and the level of taxes, shown in Chart 8, required to pay for the programs would devastate the economy. The Chart Book's many charts cover a range of budget topics in key categories, including federal spending (11 charts), federal revenue (9 charts), debt and deficits (8 charts), and entitlements (11 charts). The charts are there to help all Americans cut through the spin and extract, and more importantly understand, the critical facts about big government. "Tough policy choices and strong entitlement reforms are necessary to get the budget back on track," writes Moore. "The Budget Chart Book will help you to appreciate the size and scope of the decisions policymakers must enact to protect America's fiscal future." A victory against VAT The Value Added Tax, a harmful new tax plan that would be levied in addition to the income tax, has been defeated in an initial Senate test. In a vote of 84-13, a clear majority of Senators agreed with Senator John McCain (R-AZ) that: It is the sense of the Senate that the Value Added Tax increase will cripple families on fixed income and only further push back America's economic recovery. The Heritage Foundation could not agree more. Heritage's J.D. Foster, a Norman B. Ture Senior Fellow in the Economics of Fiscal Policy, has long opposed the VAT as a "liberal solution for unsustainable deficits that threaten the stability and very future of our economy." In fact, while discussing his resolution on the floor, Sen. McCain read directly from Foster's papers on the VAT and stated, "Mr. President, I agree with Mr. Foster." Way to go J.D. Foster! > Heritage Work of Note Do you know how many crimes you have committed today? Criminal law has shifted in recent years from a means of maintaining social order to a vehicle for social change, explains Heritage president Ed Feulner. Heritage's new book, "One Nation Under Arrest", details the myriad obscure "crimes" the average American commits in any given day. As well as squelching our personal freedoms, these laws "stifle competition and increase prices," explains Feulner. "'One Nation' highlights sensible, nonpartisan steps our country can take to get back on the right path." Americans around the country are beginning to experience the reality of our out-of-control spending. In 2010, Washington will spend over $30,000 per family—the highest amount ever in American history. Yet they will only collect roughly $18,000 from each family in taxes. How does this work? That's right—it doesn't. Heritage expert Brian Riedl explains, "the remaining $13,130 represents this year's staggering budget deficit per household, which, along with all prior government debt, will be dumped in the laps of our children." According to recent Heritage research, one in five Americans rely on the government for their housing, food, and healthcare. But despite the fact that the majority of Americans are desperately trying to derail the train toward dependency, the Obama administration is only stoking the fire. This is most certainly not the government our Founders had planned, explains Heritage's Lee Edwards. "When Congress passes and a president signs a 2,000-page bill that affects every American but is opposed by all the members of one political party as well as a majority of the people, expect consequences — both major and far-reaching." According to the Center for Disease Control, a record-breaking 1.72 million children were born out of wedlock in 2008. Despite what the mainstream media would have us believe, the demise of marriage has disastrous social and economic repercussions on our society. "The disappearance of marriage in low-income communities is the predominant cause of child poverty in the U.S. today," explain Heritage's Robert Rector. Rather than reap the political rewards of a growing welfare state fueled by dwindling marriage rates, politicians on the left need to face the uncompassionate reality they seem to promote. The mainstream media is slowly conceding to the reality that Heritage has acknowledged all along—the new healthcare bill is fraught with bad news for young adults, spiking insurance premiums for young people 29 and under by up to 17 percent. Additionally, the student loan add-ins will cause a hefty increase in student loan rates for young people. Will these fiscal burdens be the impetus for the Millennial generation's shift from loyal Obama supporters to realistic voters? Heritage Vice President Mike Franc says, "[Young people] will need to connect the negative consequences […] to the policies that gave rise to them." > In Other News As the provisions of Obamacare begin to take root, the nation may face an incredible shortage of doctors, particularly primary care physicians, due to the massive increases in the number of insured persons. The Wall Street Journal reports, this shortage could mean "more-limited access to health care and longer wait times for patients."  Over the weekend, a plane carrying the Poland's President Lech Kaczynski and other top officials crashed in Russia. Russian air-traffic controllers contend the plane was attempting to land without permission while the Polish Prime Minister argues the crash was "engineered" by Russia.   » Read Heritage President Dr. Feulner's statement about the tragedy. Congress still has not found a way to pay for $9 billion more in jobless benefits that expired April 5th. According to the Congressional Research Service, when Congress passed Obamacare, they accidentally revoked their own current health care coverage before the law created any viable alternatives. Amanda Reinecker is a writer for MyHeritage.org—a website for members and supporters of The Heritage Foundation. Nathaniel Ward, the Editor of MyHeritage.org, and Eva Brates, a Heritage Foundation intern, contributed to this report.  Donate    |   Heritage on Facebook View as HTML  |   Update Your Profile   |   Unsubscribe