A Hero Emerges- Senator Tom Coburn Steps Forth

The American system of government could not be more broken. Both parties stand miles apart in their stated beliefs and values and hurl invectives at each other. In the midst of this, a hero has emerged, Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.  The following headline is a rocket bursting through political hypocrisy and greed. . Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) released a report detailing special tax breaks for wealthy income earners that could give members of the supercommittee common ground for raising tax revenues.

 Sen. Coburn is not a liberal Democrat, a four letter word to many in this country, but rather a conservative Republican. It took an immeasurable amount of political courage for him to say the following.

“From tax write-offs for gambling losses, vacation homes and luxury yachts to subsidies for their ranches and estates, the government is subsidizing the lifestyles of the rich and famous. Multimillionaires are even receiving government checks for not working,”

His report found that millionaires enjoy $30 billion worth of tax giveaways in federal grants every year. His staff found that millionaires received $74 million worth of unemployment checks from 2005 to 2009.  In 2009, 18 people earning more than $10 million a year received an average of $12,000 in unemployment benefits. These people didn't take advantage of a loophole. rather, they were the beneficiaries of a tax and political system that is morally bankrupt.

I can understand people having a value system in which they seek to reduce the size of government and to minimize the tax burden on the vast majority of working Americans.I cannot comprehend why members of Congress would seek to preserve a system that gives handouts to millionaires. From my perspective, a substantial number of congress persons seek to enshrine a government dedicated to increasing the wealth of the most affluent
I am not a socialist. If I were a rich man I would seek to hold on to as much of my wealth as possible. However I would not expect the government to actively work towards increasing my wealth.