It was reported by MSNBC that "Restore Our Future super PAC (founded by three former Romney political aides) spent $2.8 million on ads in Iowa, nearly twice as much as the $1.5 million spent by Romney's own campaign, according to figures compiled for NBC News by Smart Media Group Delta, a media ad tracking firm."
I see real opportunity here for our states to solve serious funding problems without sticking it to the rest of us! States and local governments can't tax home owners since a reassessment of property values would bring in less and not more. They can't tax businessess since there are few with profits left to tax left. They can't make it up by increasing regular sales tax since there are few big spenders making enough purchases left.
Campaign spending in just Michigian (not a big player) for 2011 is estimated to be $100 million. It's more like $6 or $7 Billion (yes, Billion is spelled with a big "B") for the whole of the U.S. So let's tax the people we like the least (or hate the most) -- politicians! During the next year, politicians will be spending big "B" Billions taking advantage of the Republican Supreme Court's determination that corporations are people and the sky isn't the limit for campaign donations and spending.
Given that our states are providing roads and other infrastructure for these politicians to travel around and plague the citizens with their campaign broadcasts, states have standing (a legitimate reason) for imposing taxes on politicians. A state sales tax of 50% on any campaign dollars spent in any state seems fair to me.
Let's not stop there. If we manage to elect anything but a do-nothing Congress in Washington this time around, let's get busy and lobby that Congress into passing a Federal Tax on Campaign Spending! Maybe anditional 25% on top of the state's campagin spending tax for use of FCC airwaves. We should also institute a fine on individual candidates of $100,000 for each lie they tell -- a personal fine not related to campaign or lobby money bribe collecting. That could be a source of Billions and Billions in state and Federal ongoing revenue!
Our current US Congress doesn't like the idea of taxing the rich. You can't get anymore blood from the rest of us turnips (the 99% of us who aren't rich). Taxing politicians is all that's left. And it's a fair tax, all things considered. These politicians are the responsible parties for shipping our jobs offshore, the responsible parties for the housing bubble and subsequent collaspe, the responsible parties for the wall street bubble and subsequent bailout, the responsible parties for the whole economic collaspe which leaves our state governments going bankrupt trying to provide state and local services without a tax base to support citizen needs. Taxing them is the only fair approach to raising much needed state and Federal revenue.
