Apr 22 2009
22 State Reps Violated No New Tax Pledge
Gary Coates at The Conservativist posted a list of all 22 members of the South Carolina State House who signed a “No New Tax Pledge” in 2008, yet voted for the cigarette tax increase earlier this month. And Republicans wonder why everyone thinks their party is full of shit.
Here are the 22 liars:
| Bill Sandifer |
| Bryan White |
| Don Bowen |
| Dan Cooper |
| Dwight Loftis |
| Bruce Bannister |
| Rex Rice |
| Lanny Littlejohn |
| Marion Frye |
| James Lucas |
| Murrell Smith |
| James Harrison |
| Joan Brady |
| Jimmy Bales |
| Roland Smith |
| Chip Huggins |
| Kenneth Bingham |
| Annette Young |
| James Merrill |
| Tracey Edge |
| Mike Sottile |
| William Bowers |
Gee, look who’s on the list! Our buddy Rex Rice who wants to be the next Congressman from the Third District. The same Rex Rice who expects us to believe we can trust him to be a reformer in Washington D.C., yet can’t hold himself to a simple promise he made. The same Rex Rice that a commentator named “Jim” said I don’t know what I’m talking about. Now isn’t that uncanny.
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Thanks for the link. Just think, 12 of these guys have the keys to make roll call voting the law here in SC. That’s 2 shy of the majority needed to pass out of committee.
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On the contrary, looks like 22 Republicans are not full of s***. A smart person looks at facts and will change their mind when needed. An ignorant person never changes their mind.
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I have to agree with JBV here. I can’t see the problem with a cigarette tax. It raises taxes on a item that is killing the very people that are most affected by the tax. Maybe a higher tax has the ability to save lives. I can’t really see this as going against a promise, it can only improve the quality of living for all concerned. It does not limit anyone’s ability to maintain their necessities, or even standard of living.
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They signed a pledge not to raise taxes. They voted to raise taxes. How can you “not see the problem?” Did the pledge specify that certain taxes were OK? No, it did not. Every one of them knew this cigarette tax vote was coming. It was not a secret. They signed the pledge anyway and lied.
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What about the fact they are creating new programs that, if the tax is successful, will require additional funding from other sources, increasing the tax burden on other citizens.
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Can you think of a politician who kept every promise?
All I’m saying is that they raised a tax on an item that was killing people. They didn’t raise the tax on milk or eggs. These are cigarettes we’re talking about.
You talk about increasing our burden. We are already burdened by this!
We are talking about many people with emphysema, copd, asthma, people who are either unemployed and receiving social security disability which we the tax payer pay for.
On top of that they are eligible for medicare early because of this disability, also their low income qualifies them for medicaid. Last I checked we the hard working tax payers were paying for this. So here we are raising a tax on something that will hopefully get people out of the habit, give them more money in their pockets to pay for food instead of depending on charity and food stamps and you’re bellyaching because some politicians broke a promise.
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Noticed the Upstate Southern Democrats (Cole, Kelly, Forrester, Littlejohn, Rex, Smith) voted for a cigarette tax increase to expand social services and to create a new subsidized health pool. While we are begging China for money to keep the government afloat, these guys are voting in new government programs.
Rex and Smith actual got up and spoke at the TEA Party. TEA means ‘taxed enough already’ by the way. Forget the tax increase; there are no other facts to look at this bill besides it being absolutely stupid.
If you guys are simply trying to get more federal china money match into the state Medicaid program, you have lost your mind even worst. I guess the State Sovereignty Resolution was really just a joke. April Fools!
These guys don’t get it but that is why people are so FED UP. We can’t tell the difference between Republicans and the Big Spending Democrat counterparts. The day is coming, just wait!!
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BF, and as smoking revenues decline in the future, who then pays for the burden of adding these additional people to the welfare state today? This is, in essence, a double tax increase.
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Bane, i definantly see your point, but also say that you are not accounting for increased quality of life that not smoking causes.
If the number of people entering the welfare system decreases because they stopped smoking and their general health improved enough for them to continue working, we benefit. Instead of working taxpayers providing their support they pay taxes like the rest of us, and don’t get a portion of our hard earned money. Also since they have a job they would be required to provide their own health coverage not burdening the medicaid system.
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Bane, if I tell you I will read your blog everyday, and do, then next year I tell you I am not going to read it anymore, AM I A LIAR? Rex Rice has been asking the people at the Conservatist to take him of the pledge list since 1994. He can’t make them do it and they have not. After serving in the Legislature he changed his mind. He decided many taxes needed to be reduced and some eliminated, and that revenue for some programs have to come from somewhere and he has worked to get the sources of revenue to make sense. Rex has proposed legislation for years to raise taxes on cigarettes for health care. If you look at his proposals from years past you will see how much smarter they were than the one the Speaker decided would be his idea. If you do not want to give him credit for all his efforts and successes in tax reduction and reform, or his recent creative legislative solution to how to accept all the stimulus money and address Sanford’s issues, or the Sunset laws he has tried to get passed, you do not have to. The Utopian politician you are looking for will never get anything accomplished in Washington. I am a lifetime Republican Conservative that supports lower taxes, less government, and free enterprise. If you do not know that Rex Rice is that person too, you do not know him. If you think he is a liar, you do not even know anyone who knows him. I support him, clearly you do not. Why don’t you man up and say who you support and why.
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At least you are admitting to Rex’s liberal tendencies. I am saying I’m tired of having southern democrats on the republican ticket. Go jump on the democrat ticket.
If Rex is so passionate that the people wants a tax increase so the government can expand its health net why didn’t he bring it up at the TEA party.
We will see if he campaigns during the next election as a conservative and forgets to talk about the larger government programs he supports. If he does that then he is a LAIR!
Oh what a minute – He is going to say that he increased the cigaratte tax so small employers can offer insurance to their workers. You won’t hear of the new subsidized Health Pool and that people already qualify for medicaid if they are under the 200% poverty level except they have to buy into it. This bill will make it free. This is a scam joke.
COLE, FORRESTER, SMITH, REX, LITTLEJOHN, KELLY (the Bush-Obamas) are all within reach!!!!!
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You should research a little more thoroughly , many of those people did not sign in 08, they just republish that list every year, you only sign it once, typically the year you are elected to office.
Not to mention, most of those on that list are part of a group that have CUT taxes a TON in the past decade.
As far as the cigarette tax, what do you supposed we do for the rapidly rising cost of health care? My representative, Rex Rice, offered to put a tax on cigarettes that would directly fund health insurance for the lower class and keep them from going to the ER and not paying their bills.
The sponsors of that pledge make you jump through hoops to get off of it, why don’t you call Rex yourself and talk to him about all of this?
It was essentially a “cost cut” for S Carolinians, because it would have reduced their cost in health insurance…. just not through taxes, but does it matter? As long as health care cost is coming down and saving people money.
Bane: What is your solution to the constantly rising cost of health care? You said you didn’t think gov’t should support health care in ANY way so do you have a solution to the burden that those who don’t pay their bills are placing on innocent, bill paying citizens?
What is your solution? I don’t see you bashing the politicians that don’t even HAVE a health care plan, why bash the ones that actually are putting their neck on the line trying to make a difference.
I’m proud of politicians standing up for what they believe in and at least TRYING to solve this problem. At least they are DOING something. Most are just sitting ducks because they don’t want to attempt to write a bill that might not get them reelected, this is the reason why nothing gets done in government. No one has the guts to risk getting slammed.
So I’m still interested…. what exactly would you like to see done to reform health care? And yea….I’m curious too, who do you support that you think sticks to the principals that you have outline that you claim Rex Rice hasn’t? You’re telling us the politicians who are “wrong for 3rd district,” tell us some who you think are right?
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Guess we’ll never know…
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What makes you think the government needs and even has the right to be involved in health care?
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That wasn’t my question. I would love for health care to be solved in the private sector.
My question is: What is YOUR solution? You are criticizing others who are doing what they can to help out….I figure if you are bashing elected officials trying to solve the problem, you’ve got to have an idea of a better way to do it, and if doesn’t involve government, all the better!
I want to know what YOUR idea is to solve the “health care crisis.” You’ve gotta have a better one that those that you are criticizing….right?
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Raising taxes to put more people on welfare is not helping out.
Furthermore, there is no health care crisis in this country, so I have no idea what you’re talking about in that regard and therefore have no solution for a nonexistent problem.
I do think, however, that the cost of health care services can be addressed by the government getting out of it completely and allowing the forces of the free market to take over, well, for about the first time ever.
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You don’t think the fast rising cost of health care is a problem?
Better yet, you don’t think that those going to the emergency room (which cannot deny treatment to anyone) for any medical problem (large and small) and then not paying their bills, which are then passed on to the rest of us is not a problem?
You don’t think it is a problem that people will continue to get sick, there is no stopping that, and continue to go to the ER for treatment, no stopping that either, and OUR medical bills and insurance payments go through the roof? Thats NOT a problem?
So your solution is no solution? Hmm… innovative..
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Also, it was not raising taxes to put more people on medicaid, it was raising taxes to put those on medicaid on insurance to reduce their burden on the state. They would have gotten off medicaid and reduced the cost of medicaid to tax payers
The Cigarette Tax (if you took the time to read the bill) would have given those below 200% of the poverty level tax credits to use to buy FREE MARKET insurance.
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The tax is subsidizing peoples’ health care, a completely irresponsible thing to do when the state can’t even afford to pay for its current obligations.
And I never said the rising cost is not a problem; I said there is so crisis. The health care “crisis” in this country does not exist. It’s just hype drummed up by the media and those who support denying us decent health care by forcing us all into a rationed socialist system.
The cost is rising because of a lack of free markets forces in the industry and yet you keep talking about running to mother government to fix it when they are the cause of the problem in the first place.
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