Friday, March 16, 2012

Leaning To The Right

Ann Romney, speaking in behalf of her husband, Mitt Romney, said women care about the economy. Women care about the debt their children will inherit. At no point in this speech did she mention the trust fund set up so her children will not face inheritance tax on the Romney estate. She also neglected to discuss the impact of either previous administration’s or her husband’s tax plans on the deficit American women’s children will inherit. She did not appear to be concerned that her husband’s income was subject to at least a 66% lower tax rate than a women receiving wages or salary in the same amount as her husbands gross income. Finally at no point in her speech did she mention how many American women and their children will find jobs that pay enough to support the women or the children and still provide sufficient income to pay taxes to help reduce the deficit. Her husband already voiced a lack of concern for the poor saying they already had a safety net. However, Ann Romney did not appear to wonder if that safety net provided for the health and welfare of the women who needed to take advantage of that safety net. Those on the right have always leaned on slogans but once in office fail to govern according to these slogans. Deficits are caused by spending more revenue than generated by taxes. While the right would blame the deficit totally on the spending side, the right conveniently forgets the loss of revenue resulting from cutting taxes. The right has also conveniently forgotten the loss of revenue by giving preferential tax treatment to unearned income like capital gains, dividends, and carried interest. Also forgotten in the debt discussions are the costs of two wars, Medicare D, and the revenue loss of the economic recession which cost 4 million jobs. Ann was also trying to distract women from Republican sponsored legislation that would physically intrude on women’s bodies, force women to pay for contraceptives, force women to bear children if impregnated by rape, or carry a pregnancy to term in spite of a threat to the woman’s health. Until Republicans in both federal and state governments can actually enact legislation that benefits women, it seems the right has little to lean on when it comes to what is best for either women or children.

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