I know that undocumented workers are at fault for California's 23.6 BILLION dollar budget crisis because I've read comments on various news sites suggesting that California is in part falling apart because the state is trying to survive under the weight of illegal immigration. Sadly Teapublicans aren't just annoying, they aren't even original. They have zero idea how the tea bag philosophy they so stubbornly tout as 'pure American' is 'pure hogwash', and racist. It's a revival of an earlier anti-tax movement, the very anti-tax movement that's been linked to California's CURRENT budget woes. Find out how teapublican philosophy has significantly impacted the Californian economy by following me below the fold:
Two words: Howard Jarvis! Add to those two words another two chill producing words: Howard Jarvis Taxpayer's Association. It's the same organization endorsing Meg Whitman - make of that what you will. My take? It ain't good.
Not only was Jarvis a proponent of Prop 13, he worked to ensure a permanent tax cut for taxpayers. What was the outcome of Prop 13?
California's crisis winds all the way back to 1978's Proposition 13, which cut property-tax rates 57% and forced the state to rely more heavily on income tax revenue. When Californians were wealthy, the tactic generated a surplus, enabling politicians to cut taxes, pad budgets and bask in their popularity. But when times were lean, the state struggled to pay its bills. Governor Pete Wilson encountered this dilemma in 1991, as did Gray Davis in 2003. Now it's Arnold Schwarzenegger's turn to try to wrestle a highly partisan legislature into slashing enough programs to eliminate a towering deficit. Having raised taxes by $12.8 billion in February, the governor balked at a second hike.
What is it baggers want? No Federal Tax? Do away with the IRS? No income tax (at least some of them want to do away with even income taxes)? They want to fund national defense, highway projects, and all other government programs on SALES taxes? Sure, that will work. Except, where are the credible proposals showing us how sales taxes will fund the necessary government services and 'keep the government out of our pockets'?
The point about Tea Party anger misdirected anger over conditions that don't even exist was not lost on Bruce Bartlett and David Frum:
Tuesday's tea party crowd, however, thought that federal taxes were almost three times higher than they actually are. The average response was 42% of GDP and the median was 40%. The highest figure recorded in all of American history was half those figures: 20.9% at the peak of World War II in 1944.
To follow up, tea partiers were asked how much they think a typical family making $50,000 per year pays in federal income taxes. The average response was $12,710 and the median was $10,000. In percentage terms, this means a tax burden of between 20% and 25% of income.
Of course, it's hard to know what any particular individual or family pays in taxes, but according to the IRS tax tables, a single person with $50,000 in taxable income last year would owe $8,694 in federal income taxes, and a married couple filing jointly would owe $6,669.
What are state governments (the governments they claim to heavily support) supposed to if the federal government is funded by sales taxes? State governments rely on sales and income taxes. If the media ever does it's job and stops simply reporting teabaggers claims that the government is bleeding them dry and ask them what credible alternatives they have to the current system, the sooner this ends (at least for the somewhat rational folks teetering on the edge who would back away from the baggers once they get it that they have no idea what they're talking about).
The GOP is really lighting the powder keg on this one:
1 - Ill informed and angry constituents - people who believe they're being exploited despite evidence to the contrary.
2 - High rates of unemployment
3 - Hefty doses of racism
Now comes the news that state lawmakers in Oklahoma (of all places) may support a state run Tea Party Militia. Absolutely repugnant! These people are being given license to espouse the horrendous fantasy that they are at war with their government and must protect themselves!
Linked to racism are tendencies toward scapegoating, which brings us back to where we started... the belief that somehow undocumented workers are responsible for the current economic downturn in California (and the rest of the country) Notice how undocumented workers weren't perceived of hindering economic growth during the Clinton Administration - no angry mobs whining that the boom times could have been bigger:
As for undocumented workers:
Illegal immigration is persistent because it has a strong economic foundation. In addition to immigrant households contributing $133 billion dollars to the government, the American Immigration Lawyers Association also reports that immigrants "may add as much as $10 billion dollars to the economy each year" (Preston). This is a vast amount of wealth that may hurt the U.S. economy if illegal immigrants did not contribute this much money. Clearly, illegal immigrants contribute to the U.S. economy as much as their income allows them to because they want to help make this country thriving.
So put THAT in your tea leaves and smoke it!
***Title edited