As Americans file reams of tax returns and turn over a chunk of their earnings to the government this week, an interesting contrast will unfold on Capitol Hill showing just what Congress thinks of your sacrifice.
Senate Democrats will take up President Barack Obama’s so-called Buffett rule, a 30 percent tax on millionaires to raise $47 billion over the next 10 years.
Critics say it’s a stunt that amounts to a drop in the $15 trillion bucket of debt.
Meanwhile, House Republicans hope to pass a bill supported by Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R–Va.) giving small businesses a much-needed 20 percent tax break.
“We want small-business people to have more money go to their pockets, not the government’s …” Cantor told the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
After watching how Congress raises money to support the federal government, check out how government spends your dough when hearings open this week on the massive waste and jaw-dropping abuse of public funds by the Government Services Administration (GSA).
This agency in charge of managing government property spent $822,000 on a lavish Las Vegas junket, including $75,000 in training exercises, clowns, mind readers and commemorative coins.
Videos created by the government employees, on the government dime, showcased their abuse of the public trust amidst bragging that the inspector general would never catch their misdeeds.
According to the inspector general, who did discover the travesty, 50 employees received cash awards for as much as $1,000 for arranging the Vegas party.
So when sending your tax returns to the IRS this week, be sure to pay the exact postage, the government needs your money to bail out the Postal Service.
