What will force Congress to listen to us?

Whatever we’re doing, or should I say not doing, now in Congress isn’t working. They blithely go about their business with little or no thought to what we, the people, want or need. This article from Reuters outlines some of that. 

 Democrats and Republicans fought all last year over the best way to control the country’s debt and annual budget deficit, as the two parties tried to position themselves for the 2012 elections.

 Really? Elections? That’s what they care about? Not whether the current unemployment rate of 8.5%  should maybe decrease? I won’t even get into the underemployment rate, currently hovering around 67% according to some statistics.  

Congress needs to focus on what’s important and that’s us. Americans need jobs. Period.

Billion dollar tax break

Catchy title, eh? It’s bound to make you angry, however. It made us here at Supporting America angry! Read this article on Reuters: Analysis: Tax breaks on autopilot with little debate

Some key words that jumped out at us that had us seeing red:

Rubber Stamped by Congress–seriously? With a 9% approval rating they’re just going to rubber stamp anything through? HELLO! Get with the program and think about those you pretend to serve. Do we want to see any kind of rubber stamping going on? NO! Do we want to see billions in potential tax dollars fly back to coffers that don’t need it when we’re squeezed to the last drop? NO!

Sspecial interests like Nascar racetrack owners and major U.S. banks–Because NASCAR isn’t already a multi-billion dollar industry and banks…well they’re banks. Need we say more? They don’t deserve a taxs break until they give US a break!

Sailing through Congress with bipartisan backing–the only thing we here have to say is we suppose Congress can agree on something.

One provision costs the government about $4 billion, according to the Congressional Research Service.

Here’s an excerpt, but read the whole article. It’s not long and it’s worth the few minutes to read it.

UK-based Diageo, the world’s biggest liquor company that sells Captain Morgan’s rum, is enjoying a $2.7 billion subsidy from the U.S. Virgin Islands, aided in part by a tax break rubber-stamped by Congress annually with little public debate.

Recipients of more than $30 billion of tax breaks like these hope to catch a ride on the payroll tax legislation expiring next month, with special interests – from Diageo to Nascar racetrack owners to major U.S. banks – lobbying to win renewals of their preferences in the sprawling U.S. tax code.

Popular items like the research and development credit, enjoyed by most of corporate America, and smaller provisions, like a shorter write-off period for motorsports complexes that primarily benefits owners of Nascar tracks, are in the mix.

“Our criticism is it is on autopilot – once you get into that caboose, you catch a ride every year,” said Steve Ellis, a vice president at Taxpayers for Common Sense, a nonpartisan federal spending watchdog group.