December 14, 2021

Reckless Tax and Spend Spree Isn't on Anyone's Christmas List


KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • Americans celebrating the holiday season cannot avoid the damage caused by President Biden in his first year in office.
  • Families are struggling to make ends meet, as rising costs and supply chain pressures put a damper on holiday plans.
  • Democrats are so uninterested in the struggles of American families that, instead of focusing on rising prices on the table and at the gas pump, they are stuffing their reckless tax and spend spree full of billions of dollars in handouts for the rich, progressive bucket lists, and pet projects. 

Americans celebrating the holiday season cannot avoid the damage caused by President Biden in his first year in office. Democrats inflicted a $1.9 trillion boondoggle on the recovering economy in March, and they continue to push policies that have exacerbated workforce challenges, driven up energy prices, and merely camouflaged supply chain pressures. Longing for the respite of a happy holiday, beleaguered Americans instead face stressful shopping timelines and rising prices for everything under the tree.

Reckless Taxing and Spending Isn’t on Anyone’s Christmas List

Reckless Taxing and Spending Isn’t on Anyone’s Christmas Lis

An ongoing mismatch between consumer demand and supply chain availability has left shoppers scrambling to find items on their Christmas lists. Americans are getting out-of-stock messages for everything from the electronics they planned to splurge on at Christmas, to the hot toys Santa is expected to bring, to the wine for Christmas dinner.

Retailers are stretched thin trying to make it through the holiday rush in the midst of a shortage of 11 million workers, made worse by government overreach like the Biden administration’s attempts at a vaccine mandate. Stores are even dealing with a shortage of Santas.

Rising costs are putting a damper on holiday plans as Americans are increasingly anxious about the financial strain of inflation on their families. This Christmas, an average American family that budgeted $1,000 for holiday expenses will find themselves getting less for their money. They’ll have to spend more on gifts, decorations, and the holiday feast. The price tag for their artificial Christmas tree could be up as much as 25%. Skyrocketing gas prices mean they can expect to pay 50% more than last year to drive home. As wage gains continue to be outpaced by inflation, families likely will have to make tradeoffs to make holiday ends meet.

Not on Anyone’s Christmas List

Meanwhile, Democrats are fixated on their radical plans to transform the nation with the largest expansion of the federal government in 50 years. Their reckless $4.9 trillion spending spree would increase the inflation burden on Americans, while enacting sweeping, liberal policies most people aren’t asking for.

Democrats’ bill would hike taxes by $1.5 trillion, increasing the burden on small businesses and middle class families. It would impose a “toddler takeover that would upend the nation’s child care system, raising costs and eliminating choices for millions of families. Their Green New Deal energy policies threaten to kill jobs, impose higher prices on consumers, and undermine the country’s energy security. Government price controls would stifle medical innovation and threaten the pipeline for future cures. A supercharged Internal Revenue Service would go after more Americans with tax audits.

More Deplorable ideas

Democrats are so uninterested in the daily struggles of American families that, instead of focusing on rising prices on the table and at the gas pump, they are stuffing their reckless tax and spend spree full of billions of dollars in handouts for the rich, progressive bucket lists, and pet projects.

Island of Misfit and Deplorable Ideas

Island of Misfit and Deplorable Ideas

  • Abominable SALT Monster: The legislation includes a $230 billion handout for wealthy Americans in the form of an 800% increase in the cap for state and local tax deductions.

  • A “Paper” Airplane that Doesn’t Fly: Determined to extend the long arm of government into every institution, the bill would spend $1.7 billion to subsidize news businesses. Americans’ trust in the independent press has plummeted, and Democrats want to use partisan legislation to define “local” news and make the media more dependent on government.

  • A Tree that is Equitable: In an apparent stroke of agricultural woke-ism, Democrats plan to devote $2.5 billion to plant trees, with a goal of increasing “tree equity.” That’s more money than the federal government directly appropriated to state and local health departments in 2020 to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • 300k Tin “Climate” Soldiers: The legislation spends almost $7 billion for the federal government to create a Civilian Climate Corps and hire 300,000 activists-in-training. Inspired by Depression-era economics, this federal hiring sprint would come as small businesses, schools, and health care providers are trying to fill 11 million job vacancies.

  • A Chuck-in-a-House: In a pinnacle of self-dealing politics, it includes a massive Schu-mark for the New York City Housing Authority, which Majority Leader Chuck Schumer vowed to use “all of my power as majority leader” to make happen.

  • A Car that Doesn’t Drive (Far): As middle-class Americans struggle to afford record car prices, Democrats plan to pump out $5.5 billion for the federal government to purchase expensive electric vehicles for bureaucrats.

From big-government boondoggles to special interest giveaways, Democrats’ reckless $4.9 trillion legislation does not look anything like Americans’ holiday wish lists. Except maybe that they have no idea when it is going to arrive.