"Explaining to Liberals why everything can't be free"

 

This has updated information on our tax code, I remember way back when there was talk from the "occupy crowd " and other lefties about the government seizing all the money and assets from the top 10% of American and distribute it to the others especially since they stole it from everybody else.  I explained back then in 2012 that if the government took everything from the top 10% it would fund the government for only 8 months, and after that, there would be nobody to invest and create jobs. and the others in the lower tax brackets would be planning their exit strategy because they know that the government will cast their eyes further down the list looking for an income stream to supplement the taxes.

   This came from my stash

I shamelessly clipped this from "Bongino Reports"

As we speak, Elon Musk and his team of legendary 20-something math nerds are going over the government’s books with a fine-toothed comb, looking for waste, fraud, and unneeded government employees to cut. According to Elon Musk’s latest estimate, he thinks there’s something like 1.7 trillion dollars in waste and fraud that can be cut. PER YEAR:

On the other hand, Democrats have had a different approach. They don’t think we need to cut anything. In fact, they’re going nuts over cuts to wasteful spending. I mean, “cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs” level nuts:

Additionally, they keep calling for more and more things to be made “free.”

Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders have been calling for college to be made “free” for years and apparently, Joe Biden agreed with them because he put a lot of effort into waiving off people’s college loans even as the government continued to hand out more college loans.

During RFK’s confirmation hearing, Bernie Sanders asked RFK if healthcare is a “human right,” which is another way of saying it should be “free”:

Democrats have called for free childcare, free paid leave footed by the taxpayers after a pregnancy, free sex changes, and giving illegals everything from phones to cash to rent for free. They want as many people on welfare as possible for as long as possible. Their fix for deliberately shutting down the economy during COVID was just to send people stimulus checks in the mail… and we could go on

It’s unbelievable that things have sunk to this level, but to Hell with it, let’s answer the big question.

Why can’t the government just give people whatever they want for free?

Now, you might say, “Well, wait. Can’t they just print money?” Yes, they can. However – I don’t want to spend multiple paragraphs talking about monetary theory here, so I am going to keep this simple – dollars are not “value.” Dollars are just a representation of value. If you increase the supply of dollars without increasing the actual value of the things the dollar represents, you lessen the value of the dollars and you get inflation. That’s exactly what happened during COVID and it’s why everyone is complaining about how much eggs, rent, and cars cost today compared to what they did 5 years ago.

So, just printing large amounts of money ends up being counterproductive.

Ultimately, the same could be said of borrowing money. When the government borrows money, that money needs to be paid back with interest. For a business, that can often make sense. If a business takes a million-dollar loan to buy a piece of equipment that allows them to create 10 million dollars worth of value, they can afford to pay the loan back with interest and have plenty of money left over. Very rarely do the government’s loans pay off in that fashion and taking them out to give people things for “free” is just a loss. We’re already 36 TRILLION dollars in debt and we paid 882 billion in interest alone in just 2024 as a result of doing that.

We also cannot forget that saying, “The government is giving you this for free” is another way of saying, “The government is giving you something paid for by taxpayers.” That’s who ultimately funds the government. You. Me. Everyone who pays taxes.

So, for the government to give a group of people something for “free,” it means another group of people has to have money they earned confiscated by the government so it can be given to those other people for “free.”

How much more of the money that you EARN do you want to give to other people for free? As a practical matter, we know that the typical answer is either “none” or “very little” by the fact that we have such an extremely progressive tax system. The middle class doesn’t want to pay more taxes. If anything, most people think their taxes are already far too high.

“Well, wait,” liberals will say, “what about the rich? We can just have them pay for everything since they don’t pay their fair share.”

Except that claim is a scam, too. Keep in mind, as a starting point, the rich are already paying a wildly disproportionate share of the taxes:

The top 10% of income-earning Americans make up 48% of the gross income, but they pay 71% of the taxes. That definitely sounds like they’re paying their “fair share.”

Still, they have more money, right? Even if we’re soaking them, so what? Why not soak them even more? Well, as a starting point, just as we’ve seen rich people move from states that have their tax burden rise too high, they can also move from COUNTRIES that tax them too heavily. That would be bad because the more rich people we have here, the more taxes they pay here. That’s a good thing and losing that revenue is a bad thing for our country.

Even setting that aside, going back to the famous fairy tale, how much can you take before you, “kill the goose that lays the golden eggs?” Do you really want to put taxes on the richest Americans that are so high you make them retire to a villa in the countryside instead of producing 71% of America’s income taxes? Sane people would say “No” because we already have a large debt and if tax revenues from the wealthy were to drop off a cliff, it would mean the middle class would have to be soaked to make up for it.

However, as we all know, many liberals are not sane and they would say, “Sure! Hit them with a wealth tax! Take it all!” Let’s say we did just that with the richest Americans. Let’s do the full Elizabeth Warren bit and loot EVERYTHING America’s billionaires have. We’ll zero them out, take them off the board and then we’ll have lots of money for “free” projects then, right?

Not so much.

“There are now 801 billionaires based in the United States with a combined wealth totaling $6.22 trillion, according to an Institute for Policy Studies analysis of the Forbes Real Time Billionaire List.”

6.22 trillion dollars sounds like a lot of money. Heck, it is a lot of money. Almost an IMPOSSIBLE amount of money, but it’s not even enough to run the federal government for a single year. In Joe Biden’s final year in office, the government spent 6.75 trillion dollars – and that’s before we add any new “free” programs. Also, again, you can’t forget that we’re talking about wiping all these billionaires out financially, which means the next year, there would be a MASSIVE DROP OFF of income taxes paid. What happens if a farmer eats all of his seed corn and has none to plant for next year? He starves.

America doesn’t even have the money to pay for our current budget without going into debt, so it seems obvious that we can’t afford any new “free” programs. In fact, “free” programs shouldn’t even be ON THE TABLE until we’ve paid off our debt and are running a surplus. Not only is that highly unlikely to ever happen in the first place, even if it did, we’d almost certainly be better off letting people keep more of their own money rather than taxing them on their earnings and giving it away for “free.”

The cost to renounce citizenship is increasing...and other musings....

   Sorry I havn't posted much the past few days, was real busy and just was a lot I wanted to blog about, but trying to organize my mind to actually get a coherent thought on the blogger was daunting....

There has been an increase of people renouncing their citizenship in the United States, for some people, it is political...for some it is income related.  For some it is a " I havn't been there in 40 years and don't want to go back."   There are some people from work that are talking about selling all they have and moving to Belize or some of the other countries in South America.  Of becoming Expats.
     The reasons from talking to people at work, and remember I work at a place where skilled tradesman are prevalent.  The fears are from the economic uncertainty from the mountains of debt we as a country are ringing up and will have to pay or default.  They are afraid that their saved money for their retirement will be seized by the .gov types to either shore up social security or another pie in the sky scheme to rip off Peter to ensure Paul votes for them. 

  Others also see the coming police state and the comment I hear is " Is this what Germany was like in the 1930's before WWII?"  They point to the militarization of the Police, when you also have EliJah Cummings the congressman from Maryland, the same one that tries to derail the Hearings into the IRS targeting conservative groups.  Imploring the President of the United States Barack Obama...the Same President  that has all the scandals associated with him.  From Fast and Furious, Solyndra,BenGazi, V.A., see the complete list HERE  What the honorable congressman want is a "National Standard on Police" to avoid another Ferguson.  The same time the "AttackWatch" program that the White house is pushing to basically squeal on your neighbor...bet your conservative neighbor gets audited....Nothing like making the Police force answer to a national authority....Isn't that why Department of Homeland Security gets all those nifty MRAPS and other cool paramilitary toys to play with?  The Same DHS that has the cool link with "See something suspicious....Report them.   I am sure Himmler would have approved.   I wonder if down the road if the people reporting their neighbors gets special food coupons as a reward.  I am a student of history and I learned that the East German Stasi basically had one out of 7 East German citizens as "Snitches" on their fellow Germans.

     Those are the biggest reasons people are talking about leaving....The economic and Political.  I would hear about all these hollywood empty suits talk about leaving the United States if So and So happened....but they are still here.  But in Real life, the people in flyover country are leaving. and the government is making it harder....I keep hearing the "Economic Berlin Wall" that the .Gov types are erecting to keep people in or if not people....their assets.  That is all we are to them...is livestock to be milked for our economic worth for them and occasionally slaughtered(SWATTED) to feed them.
      I have toyed with the idea, I want my son to have better opportunities than I have and with the way things are going, he may find it more difficult with "Set Asides".  But that is a hard decision to make.  I remembered something Warner Von Braun had stated and I saw it while we went to the Huntsville Rocketry center....A very cool trip if you are in to stuff like that....and I am:)

    This is the biggest reason I will not be an EXPAT, I will make my stand here in the United States...If she falls, the fall of Western civilization is guaranteed...you know the Western civilization where the individual is prized....whereas other places, it is your group or tribe that decides for you.  You notice that all the stuff that the leftist talk about are "Group rights...Group identities "  stuff that is granted by a government....that is stuff that can be taken away by a government.    The Bill of rights...codifies our individual rights...granted by God, and is our protection against an intrusive government,.

I was surfing through Drudge Report and ran across this article on Forbes

Over the last two years, the U.S. has had a spike in expatriations. It isn’t exactly Ellis Island in reverse, but it’s more than a dribble. With global tax reporting and FATCA, the list of the individuals who renounced is up. For 2013, there was a 221% increase, with record numbers of Americans renouncing. The Treasury Department is required to publish a quarterly list, but these numbers are under-stated, some say considerably.
The presence or absence of tax motivation is no longer relevant, but that could change. After Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin departed for Singapore, Senators Chuck Schumer and Bob Casey introduced a bill to double the exit tax to 30% for anyone leaving the U.S. for tax reasons. That hasn’t happened, but taxes are still a big issue for many.

U.S. flag (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

To leave America, you generally must prove 5 years of U.S. tax compliance. If you have a net worth greater than $2 million or average annual net income tax for the 5 previous years of $157,000 or more for 2014 (that’s tax, not income), you pay an exit tax. It is a capital gain tax as if you sold your property when you left. At least there’s an exemption of $680,000 for 2014. Long-term residents giving up a Green Card can be required to pay the tax too.
Now, the State Department interim rule just raised the fee for renunciation of U.S. citizenship to $2,350 from $450. Critics note that it’s more than twenty times the average level in other high-income countries. The State Department says it’s about demand on their services and all the extra workload they have to process people who are on their way out.
The notice says:
1. Consular officers must confirm that the potential renunciant fully understands the consequences of renunciation, including losing the right to reside in the United States without documentation as an alien.
2. Consular officers must verify that the renunciant is a U.S. citizen and they must conduct a minimum of two intensive interviews with the potential renunciant. Consular officers must even review at least three consular systems before administering the oath of renunciation.
3. The final approval of the loss of nationality must be done within the Directorate of Overseas Citizens Services in Washington, D.C. After that, the case is returned to the Consular officer overseas for final delivery of the Certificate of Loss of Nationality to the renunciant.
4. These steps  add to the time and labor be involved in the process. Accordingly, the Department is increasing the fee for processing such requests from $450 to $2,350.
Apparently, dual citizens in Canada trying to shed their U.S. citizenship have created a backlog at the U.S. consulate in Toronto that stretches into the third week of January 2015. A decision to expatriate should never be taken lightly. Taxes or not, it can be a big step. And around the world, more people are talking about taking it.
Contact me at Wood@WoodLLP.com. This discussion is not intended as legal advice, and cannot be relied upon for any purpose without the services of a qualified professional.

Never heard of FATCA? You will. FATCA—the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act—is America’s global tax law. It was quietly enacted in 2010, and after a four-year ramp up, it’s finally in effect. What is most amazing is not its impact on Americans—although that is considerable—but its impact on the world. Yes, the whole world.
Never before has an American tax law attempted such an astounding reach. And it’s clear FATCA has succeeded, after shrewd diplomacy by President Obama and his Treasury Department. (There are probably some congratulatory emails somewhere!)  FATCA requires foreign banks to reveal Americans with accounts over $50,000. Non-compliant institutions could be frozen out of U.S. markets, so everyone is complying.
Here are 10 facts about FATCA:
1. FATCA Blew In On a Perfect Storm. FATCA grew out of a controversial rule. America taxes its citizens—and even permanent residents—on their worldwide income regardless of where they live. In 2009, the IRS struck a groundbreaking deal with UBS for $780 million in penalties and American names. Recently, Credit Suisse took a guilty plea and paid a record $2.6 billion fine.

Since then, with over a hundred Swiss banks taking a DOJ deal and many other developments, banking is now more transparent than could ever have been imagined. FATCA was enacted in 2010, when only some of those developments were unfolding. The idea was to cut off companies from access to critical U.S. financial markets if they didn’t pass along American data. And boy did that idea work.
2. Everyone Around the World is Complying. More than 80 nations—including virtually every one that matters—have agreed to the law. So far, over 77,000 financial institutions have signed on too. Countries must throw their agreement behind the law or face dire repercussions. Even tax havens have joined up. The IRS has a searchable list of financial institutions. See FFI List Search and Download Tool and a User Guide. Countries on board are at FATCA – Archive.
3. Even Russia and China Agreed to FATCA. If you think money anywhere can escape the IRS, think again. Even notoriously difficult China and Russia are on board. Which is more amazing? Probably Russia. The U.S. and Russia were negotiating a FATCA deal until March, 2014, but Russia’s annexation of Crimea caused the U.S. to suspend talks. That meant Russian financial institutions faced being frozen out of U.S. markets. Russia took last minute action to allow Russian banks to send American taxpayer data to the U.S. when President Vladimir Putin Signed a Law in the 11th Hour to Satisfy U.S. Treasury.
4. FATCA is America’s Big Stick. Cleverly, FATCA’s 30% tax and exclusion from U.S. markets would be so catastrophic that everyone has opted to comply. Foreign financial institutions must withhold a 30% tax if the recipient isn’t providing information about U.S. account holders. The choice is simple, and that’s why everyone is complying.
5. Everyone is on the Lookout for American Indicia. Foreign Financial Institutions (FFIs) must report account numbers, balances, names, addresses, and U.S. identification numbers. For U.S.-owned foreign entities, they must report the name, address, and U.S. TIN of each substantial U.S. owner. And in what is a kind of global witch hunt, American indicia will likely mean a letter. Don’t ignore it.
6. FBARs Are Still Required. FBARs predate FATCA, but get ready for duplicate reporting. FATCA just adds to the burden, including Form 8938, but it doesn’t replace FBARs. The latter have been in the law since 1970 but have taken on huge importance since 2009. U.S. persons with foreign bank accounts exceeding $10,000 must file an FBAR by each June 30.
These forms are serious, and so are the criminal and civil penalties. FBAR failures can mean fines up to $500,000 and prison up to ten years. Even a non-willful civil FBAR penalty can mean a $10,000 fine. Willful FBAR violations can draw the greater of $100,000 or 50% of the account for each violation–and each year is separate. The numbers add up fast. Court Upholds Record FBAR Penalties, Exceeding Offshore Account Balance.
7. FATCA is Compelling Compliance. U.S. account holders who aren’t compliant have limited time to get to the IRS. The IRS recently changed its programs, making its Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program a little harsher. Yet for those not willing to pay the 27.5% penalty—which rose to 50% August 4, 2014 for some banks—the new IRS’s Streamlined Program may be a good option for those who qualify.
The latter applies now to both foreign and U.S.-based Americans. Some still want to amend their taxes and file FBARs in a “quiet disclosure” which could bring civil FBAR penalties or even prosecution. Thus, caution is clearly in order.
8. Banking Will Never Be the Same. FATCA is making banking transparent worldwide. With Swiss bank deals, prosecutions, summonses, and FATCA, the IRS has quicker, better and more complete information than ever.
9. Forget Repeal or Dismantling FATCA. Republicans have mounted a lackluster repeal effort, but there’s no serious push to repeal FATCA. At least not one that’s getting traction. (No hate mail please, but honest, repeal now isn’t likely.) Some say FATCA will be like prohibition, lasting for a time but doomed. We’ll see, but it sure doesn’t look that way now.

Still, Canadians recently Filed Suit To Block FATCA And Prohibit Handover Of U.S. Names To IRS. The suit claims the Inter-Governmental Agreement under which Canada can turn over private bank account information  is illegal. The legal claim challenges the constitutionality of the agreement the Canadian government struck with the United States.
10. Don’t Count on Other Passports. Some dual nationals or U.S. Green Card holders think they can bypass FATCA—and other U.S. tax rules—by using a non-U.S. passport and non-U.S. address with their foreign bank. Don’t. You may just make it worse, handing the IRS another badge of willfulness. Your bank and the IRS will likely find out eventually, even if not right away.

Integrity...? Democrats.....Not a Chance.

This post has been rattling in my head for several days but kinda like a zit, it hasn't been able to erupt until now.......Nice analogy right...?
   

We have been treated to the spectacle of the I.R.S. telling congress that " The Dog ate the Emails"....Any IT guy unless they are a shameless political hack would have thrown the *Bullshit* flag on that one.  Emails are forever, things are always backed up.  You are talking about an organization that has the ability to go back 40 years on a taxpayer then assess penalties for "past debt" owed to the government.  Far fetched...?  Not really this happened to a older women in Texas who's mom drew benefits back when she was a child.  Now the IRS wants to get reimbursed.  There was a code for "past due" amounts written into the 2012 tax code I believe for past due amounts...and the government just happened to "find" this paperwork  that was generated over 40 years ago by her mom.  People were pissed because there is a principle of American jurisprudence that the child is not to be liable for the debts of the parents, something about serfs and indentured servants.   One of the many gripes we had with the crown of England back in the 18 century.   Now the government can go after you for debt that your parents accrued...not you...but you are on the hook for it.  Last I heard, she was still fighting with the IRS to get her tax refund and prevent future garnishment.

     Back to my original point.....( Ohhh a shiny!!!)...The idea of using the organs of government against ones political enemy also goes against the American system.  The government employees since the late 19th century have been protected and difficult to fire due to political influences.  Basically the government employees don't have to toady up to a political candidate or party to ensure their job.  This is what makes this more egregious because of this little fact.   They CHOOSE to help one party over another...This is ideological only...Their oath of office to treat everybody "fairly" was thrown into the gutter based on an ideological belief.  

     This brings me to a second point, I have commented on a few other blogs that the democrats are pure ideological animals...It is party above all.  The average democrat has a hierarchy of needs or beliefs,  Above all is the Democratic Party, this supersedes their oath to the country.  If it is harmful for the country...but advantageous to their party based on ideology..well guess what...it sucks for the U.S.A.  Second is themselves, if it is good for their party and good for themselves.....Great!  They will be all over it like ants on a picnic.   Next is Country, if it benefits the higher 2 "needs" and well it also benefits the country....Great, they can brag about it when they run for reelection.  And finally it is God.  To a democrat, "God" is last....Remember the 2012 democratic convention..they removed "God" from their platform and only due to political trickery it was reinstated.(Bad P.R you know...)

        To the average Democrat, Party trumps all.   President Obama has committed many "impeachable" crimes in his time in office but since he is the standard bearer of their party, they will cover for him no matter what he does....Remember to a democrat, Party is above all else.   Integrity is just one of those old values that no longer have any meaning, the party must prosper.  I remember in my research in the early 70's when Nixon got caught with his hand in the cookie jar, the republicans values their oath of office over their loyalty to Nixon and the impeachment proceedings started up in the congress, and the GOP basically told Nixon, "You are screwed" and after losing the support of his party, he resigned rather than take his chances with an impeachment hearing.   Can you imagine the screaming if the situation is reversed?   

        We have the Democrats stonewalling the hearings because it might make their messiah look bad since the I.R.S is part of the executive branch and President Obama and the Democrats might get some blowback for using the organs of the state against his and their opponents.  This is what is done in 3rd world banana republics....The opposition party is harassed, their members are routinely jailed and beaten and in more extreme cases, killed.  I still remember the picture of the Opposition Party Guillermo Endara being beaten by members of the "dignity battalion" a supporter of General Noriega.

  And I mention the 2012 elections where members of the SIEU a government union and a huge supporter of President Obama would attack and beat members of the "TEA party" and harass others at townhall events.  The Democrats would try to stack the townhall with their  SIEU supporters to prevent any body else who would show up to criticize their support of Obamacare.  

        This thuggish behavior is excused by the democrats, they are happy with this because it benefits"Their Guy".  What they don't realize is that this also can be used AGAINST them.   This is my issue with this,   It is an integrity issue, back in the 1970 members of the president's party was willing to hold their oath of office as sacrosanct, but today it is totally venal, whatever feels good for "the Now".  Who cares for the future.....

      

I pulled this off Rush's website.  It pertains to the other posts that I have posted(pardon the pun) in the past week.  I have heard the people from the I.R.S. say " it was low level operatives" that did it.  Well that was crap.  It was sanctioned by the upper staff and management of the agency.  Between the union offering their support and the upper management backing the play, it was open season on the TEA PARTY and other groups.  Really...Do you know a  bureaucrat that would stick their neck out?  Not a chance..being a bureaucrat. they learn to blend in, not make waves...Don't do more than anybody else...Unless it was sanctioned and encouraged.  Let this continue, lets keep digging.  The article is from Rush, The cartoons are from me.

The IRS Suppressed the Romney Vote

May 24, 2013

Windows Media

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: If you're just really hankering to write some e-mails to people about your true thoughts of the IRS, this is the day to do it.  They're furloughed.  This is May 24th, the IRS is furloughed today because of the sequester, and then of course Monday is Memorial Day, they're not working.  You might have an entire weekend where you can unload. Plus Lois Lerner, in the, whatever it was, three or four years, it's now scrolled out of my vision, Lois Lerner was paid something like $780,000 over four years, or three years, where she was engaged in all of this activity that was aimed at denying tax-exempt status to Tea Party groups.  Salary and bonus.  She was earning more than members of Congress.  She was earning more than some senators, some committee chairmen.
And now she's been placed on administrative leave.  Do you know what that means?  Paid vacation.  Not paid leave.  Paid vacation.  Lois Lerner.  So the IRS, it's the first day of the Memorial Day weekend, and everything's pretty much changed its vibe.  There isn't a whole lot of going on.  Everybody psychologically, mentally, already is engaged in the long weekend.  Look, Lois Lerner from 2009 to 2012 earned about $780,000.  That was for a job well done.  Paid more than $740,000 between 2009 and 2012, which is the period that the IRS was targeting the Tea Party.  Her salary, therefore, averaged more than $185,000 a year, which is higher than congressmen and senators.  On top of that, she received more than $42,000 in bonuses.

But if she helped Obama get reelected -- two days ago, three days ago, folks, I spent a lot of time -- by the way, I've now seen this reported in a number of places, and again, it's cutting edge stuff.  We've been talking for the longest time about the phenomena of the 2012 election.  Obama got millions fewer votes in 2012 than he did in '08, but so did Romney get many million fewer votes than did McCain.  And up until this IRS scandal hit, the analysis of Romney's low vote turnout centered on white voters.  There were supposedly four million white voters who just didn't show up.  And then people began to offer their theories, me included, as to why, based on that statistic.
And you remember the theories; they ran the gamut.  Well, a lot of these people were conservative and didn't like Romney, he wasn't conservative enough, and so they sat it out.  Another explanation was these people, they're the backbones of the country. They're the ones getting up and going to work every day. They're the ones losing their jobs. They're the ones that are trying hard to improve, play by the rules, and nobody's paying attention to them.  Everybody's focused on the illegals. Everybody's focused on gay marriage. Everybody's focused all these other things, "to hell with it," and they just stayed home.
Now we know it may have been all that, but there was also vote suppression. That's what this IRS scandal is, folks, voter suppression.  This election, the 2012 election honestly deserves an asterisk next to it.  Lois Lerner and the IRS made sure -- oh, and here's another thing.  It is still going on.  Don't think that it's ended.  Let's say you're a Tea Party group and you're applying for tax-exempt status.  You don't have to be denied in order to be discriminated against.  What if your application has been in for years and it's still open and you just haven't heard?  It's the equivalent of being denied.  You still can't get into action, you can't get you can't get into gear.
So this partisan attack on Tea Party and other conservative groups concerning tax-exempt status is still going on.  There are groups who have applications in, and they're just languishing, no action has been taken.  So the IRS doesn't have to flat-out deny you your status.  They can just delay the approval.  So you're sitting out there in limbo.  And that is continuing to happen.  And the upshot of it is that a lot of Tea Party money was never raised, and therefore was never spent on this campaign.  A lot of Tea Party enthusiasm was tamped down.  A lot of religious Tea Party groups never got into gear. They were never authorized to. They were never authorized to start.  They needed to be able to fund-raise in a tax-exempt way in order to get starts and they weren't.
There is no question about it now.  That's what this is all about.  There was a flat-out effort to suppress the conservative vote in this election while everybody was listening to the allegation that conservatives wanted to suppress the black vote or the gay vote, all the attention focused on photo ID, to be able to vote.  The Democrats, "That's racism. That's an effort to suppress the black vote."  You remember all during that campaign the Democrats worried about Republican vote fraud and suppressing the vote.  Well, where it really happened was the government, the IRS, another political arm of the Obama regime literally suppressing conservative voting, fundraising, and turnout.

You know, even I end up taking too much at face value.  The reason that I thought all of the pre-election polling in 2012 was wrong was 'cause they were using '08 turnout for their models.  And I was sitting here telling you, all frustrated, "What about 2010?  Does nobody remember the 2010 midterms?"  The 2010 midterms, the Democrat Party got smoked, and it was the Tea Party that did it.  The Democrat Party got smoked all the way down to local elections, where they got beat.  I think the Democrats lost close to 700 seats nationwide, including the Republicans taking back the House.  It was of a huge turnaround in 2010.  It was massive.  And I just naturally concluded that that turnout would show up again in 2012 because what was it that inspired that turnout?
Obamacare.  And the stimulus.  And every other assault that Obama had made on this economy in this country.  Nothing had changed.  It had only gotten worse.  And I kept looking at these pre-election polls which show Obama winning by five or six, said this doesn't make sense to me.  The election happens, I look at the exit polling data: "55% still blame Bush for the economy." When I saw that, I knew it was over. Five o'clock exit poll, I knew it.  And then the other question that sealed it for me was: "Cares about people like me."  That one broke out 81 to 19 for Obama.  And that was the five o'clock exit poll.  It's over.  The whole night then, everybody kept waiting for Ohio as the last chance.
So the election's over, we're analyzing it, talking about this, "What happened to the 2010 turnout?"  Now we know, folks, now we know.  The Democrats did take note of what happened to 'em in 2010.  They did take note of what the Tea Party did, and by God, they made sure they weren't gonna be able to do it in 2012, and they did.  And those pre-election polls that were using a 2008 turnout for their modeling.  And you remember we would marvel here at the samples that would have Democrats plus 11 and plus eight, and they were basing that on what happened in 2008, and nothing changing in 2012.  So what about 2010?  I said, "Now, 2010, especially, there wasn't even a Republican on the ballot."
There wasn't a Republican issue on the ballot.  There wasn't a single thing on the ballot that would unite and inspire Republicans.  What that 2010 turnout was about was stopping Obama.  I thought, "Well, those people are gonna show up again."  And then we were told "Nope, Romney made 'em stay home."  That never made sense to me.  I'm sorry, it just never made sense to me.  I never understood intellectually how people who were so opposed to Obama in 2010 because of what was happening to the country could, in two years, end up having more dislike for Romney.
That just didn't fit.  But we didn't know then what we know now.  We had to accept that explanation, and I'm feeling like an idiot here for doing so.  'Cause now we know there was utter -- there's no other way to describe this.  It was pure, utter voter suppression.  That's what the IRS was doing.  It was no different than what the New Black Panther Party did at places in Philadelphia.  There was voter intimidation there at those polling places.  So this is really serious stuff.  And it's not getting traction really beyond the political class.  Not yet, be honest about it, low-information voters, the polling data anyway says they don't care, who knows.  But I'll tell you, I never forget that Thomas Edsall piece.  I quoted this over and over, New York Times column.  It was in November of 2011, which they admitted that Obama was gonna abandon the white working class vote and try to suppress it.
That's what the purpose that column was.  They came out and said what they were going to do.  They were going to try to depress and dispirit the conservative vote while giving up on the white middle class vote.  They were gonna give up on getting the vote, but they were gonna do what they could to make sure they didn't show up, and they did.  It was just another form of election fraud.  Now, in hindsight, nothing you can do about it, other than learn from it in the future, but it really is maddening.