‘Capital’ hill rising

Daniel Garza writes an editorial for Fox News Latino regarding the Fiscal Cliff Deal. The agreement amasses and centralizes more tax dollars, more power and more control over Americans. In my last editorial I predicted Washington’s elected leadership would come to an agreement on the so-called fiscal cliff and save us all in the nick of time, in a “MacGyver-esque” fashion.

I also predicted that ultimately there would be no significant spending cuts, and regrettably, I was right on both counts.

We are told by an “objective” media that a group of “heroic” and “courageous” politicians set aside the partisan rancor that currently dominates the halls of Congress to come together in the dead of night and save us all from falling to the abyss.

So they did, but forgive me if I am not quick to join in the round of applause and celebrations of the political classes presently patting each other on the back.

The truth is our elected “heroes” green-lighted the largest tax increase in two decades, ignored calls for necessary entitlement reform, and put forth no real spending cuts.

Professional political spenders on Capitol Hill have been given new license to amass more and more capital from taxpayers that will allow them to achieve their political dreams and purposes while leaving much less for average Americans struggling to pursue theirs.

To that end, they have chosen to heap more of the burden and the blame of their ruinous and myopic spending onto the shoulders of hard working Americans – the productive, entrepreneurial classes whose transgressions involve creating wealth and economic opportunities for the rest of us.

The agreement does little to revive our moribund economy because it inhibits investment, innovation and risk-taking in the private sector.

It is an approach that will not put Americans back to work and it will not generate real economic growth, nor spur any desperately needed and real, sustainable prosperity.

The “grand bargain” does not rein in deficit spending, it does nothing to reform our unsustainable entitlement programs – all anticipated to go bankrupt in the near future – and it does nothing to control professional spenders from continuing to put the future of our children in economic peril.

It is just more bad policy on top of already failed policy designed to continue the growth of government, resume the practice of government cronyism and fulfill President Barack Obama’s desire of more and more income redistribution.

In brief, taxes will increase significantly for those who make more than $400,000 a year and 77 percent of all Americans will now have to pay the two percent point cut for payroll taxes on the first $113,000 because the cut was allowed to expire at the end of 2012.

For example, households making between $40,000 and $50,000 will face an average tax increase of $579 this year according to a Tax Policy Center report. Additionally, the estate, dividend, payroll and capital gains taxes will rise for all those who commerce, invest and participate in business activities.

Inexplicably, even though the final terms of the agreement were disastrous for Republicans, enough of them voted in favor of approving the atrocious spending bill.

This, despite obtaining a mere trifle in the amount of spending cuts they initially sought, securing no assurances of future entitlement reform and risking to lose any or all credibility they held as being the more fiscally responsible party (of note, a majority of Republican congressmen in the House voted against the bill).

Incidentally, what message does Washington send to Americans who are asked to make personal sacrifices, work harder to increase economic growth, and help to grow the national treasury through increased taxation when Congress has shown to be spineless each time they are asked to approve spending cuts?

The only thing that will put us back on a path of fiscal responsibility, remedy our debt, address our deficit problems and restore our economic vibrancy are measures that reform our tax code and spending restraints which include reforming the programs we spend most money on: the Pentagon and entitlement programs like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid (you can now add Obamacare to the mix of massive Federal programs).

Americans, however have yet another looming crisis on the horizon when we confront the debt limit in just two short months.

One thing is for certain- professional political spenders are sure to welcome the debate. After all, gauging by the vote on the fiscal cliff, they now make up the majority of Congress.

Read more: http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/opinion/2013/01/02/daniel-garza-capital-hill-rising/#ixzz2HUS7xmEb