Great Moments in Regressiveness 2
Virginia Governor Bob McDonald has a bizarre plan to fix Virginia’s chronically underfunded highways (underfunded because raising the gas tax is verboten in Virginia, though the gas tax is one of the lowest in the country, having been lowered by Republicans), by eliminating the gas tax, raising the sales tax, and imposing a special tax on owners of hybrids.
I can’t quite figure out the reasoning behind it, other than legacy! innovative thinking! ground-breaking! Plus, it’s deeply regressive, skewing more taxes towards those who have the least.
Maybe Dan Casey of the Roanoke Times can help make sense of it.
The same sort of thing is going on in other places ruled by the party of the takers Republicans.
January 30, 2013 at 11:50 am
“But in deep red states like Louisiana or Kansas, Republicans are much freer to act on their beliefs — which means moving strongly to comfort the comfortable while afflicting the afflicted.”
This is their new old thing. You can easily find groups of right wing white guys who are really pissed at the idea of the income tax and, subsequently, how they believe the line that half of America gets out of paying taxes. So, inevitably, they come to the idea of raising sales taxes, consumption taxes, to restore order, democracy and make everyone have “a stake” in the pie. It cost me an acquaintance who just wouldn’t lay off ranting about the necessity for a sales tax before the holidays. So this is the GOP strategy, as Krugman pointed out about Bobby Jindal, who is using they same tactic. They have no power to do anything at the federal level, so they’re doing it at the state level while they still can. Eventually, as in California, the people will get so sick of being victimized by them they’ll kick them out at the local level, too. Although it may take years. The added tax for hybrid users is simple victimizing of the owners for having the temerity to go to technology the GOP believes there’s no need for because of its delusions.
January 30, 2013 at 4:33 pm
They believe their own propaganda. Like the blob, it moves on its own.
Almost all the same Republicans have been driven out and there’s no one to restrain the crazies. When Ken Cucinelli is a voice of reason, you know something strange is happening.