A commentary by
By Chuck Baldwin
March 25, 2003
(Used by Chuck Baldwin's permission on CR's Range)
The Republican Party likes to tout itself as the party of limited government. Unfortunately, their track record does not live up to their rhetoric. In fact, under Republican leadership, federal expenditures are currently in the process of mushrooming even faster than under big-spending Democrats such as Lyndon Johnson.
Furthermore, it is Republicans such as the governor of Tennessee and mayor of New York City that are in the process of trying to force new taxes upon the people in their respective cities and states - and they are not alone. Congressional Quarterly recently reported that Republicans in Washington, D.C., are mulling a proposal to increase federal gasoline taxes by as much as 20 cents a gallon!
House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Don Young reportedly said, "The tax increase will probably be included when the committee drafts a surface transportation bill later this spring that would push the current 18.4-cent federal gas tax to more than 30 cents a gallon by 2009."
A never-ending increase in federal gasoline taxes is another example of the so-called "hidden taxes" that Washington politicians have become famous for. And no one plays this shell game better than Republicans do.
While loudly promising to cut taxes on the one hand, Republicans plan to quietly increase taxes with the other hand. It's the old "Potomac Two Step."
Furthermore, if history is any indication of the future, "conservatives" across the board will offer little or no resistance. When Democrats propose new taxes, "conservatives" protest vehemently. However, when Republicans do the same thing, "conservatives" become blind and mute.
The only way for the American people to realize a genuine reduction in taxation is for them to hold their elected representatives accountable to truly reducing the size and growth of federal expenditures. However, that doesn't seem likely to occur anytime soon. The American people, including "conservatives," seem to be intoxicated with big government.
© Chuck Baldwin
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