Blog
THANK YOU!!!
Dear Valued Friends and Supporters,
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”
Our cause was and is worthy, YOU ARE ALL HEROES in my book. Yes, we lost the battle of the election. But, like never before in this generation the Citizens of the 5th district became engaged in the battle, raised our voices and refused to be ignored. George Washington lost almost every battle he fought in the Revolution. But, the result was the greatest nation in the history of the earth. From Washington to the youngest private, they were all called to do their part in something much bigger than any battle. Something I submit none of them could fully imagine.
We have banded together, called to bring the governance of this great nation back to the people. Yes we have lost the battle. But we have started something much bigger than any one of us. Something I doubt that anyone, including me can fully imagine. Please heed and obey that call whatever the battle.
It has been an honor and a privilege to serve this country alongside each of you.
God Bless You All!!!
Fenn Little
Posted: November 3rd, 2010 | Permalink
Let Us Learn From Others
“London Fog”
The mother country offers a glimpse of our near future.
By Dan Kennedy ; Wednesday, October 27, 2010 2:22 PM EDT
I have just returned from a week in London. The food was gray, weather grayer, and their economy bleak, dark and foreboding.
Their coalition government’s hastily cobbled together “austerity program” became a big U.S. news item while I was there, but our news doesn’t do justice to the severity of their problems.
A few highlights of what were described by one news commentator as “the most painful cuts to Britain’s bloated welfare budget since World War II”: in recent years, during the winter, people who can’t pay their heating bills have been given 25 pounds a day; that is to be cut to 8 pounds. A child-benefit now paid until age 18 will be reduced to 16, and taken away entirely from high income earners – in total, taking money from 2-million families. Factories employing disabled workers have been given subsidies. That is to end. Government jobs are to be slashed. Pension benefits will be “adjusted.” The government is desperately seeking a private sector buyer for its postal system. Symbolically, the Queen has even cancelled this year’s Christmas party. Even the dogs I saw out for walks in Kensington Park seemed worried.
Britain’s VAT tax is going up, from 17 percent to 20 percent – but remember that’s not a simple 3 percent bump, because goods are taxed multiple times as they move from first source to manufacturer to distribution points to retail. It’s a tax scheme that we are being prepped for here, to be layered atop an already evil income tax system. And make no mistake, it’s a tax on poor and rich alike, that once installed, will increase again and again over time.
Britain’s news is full of dire predictions of mass retail shop closings after the first of the year, an evolving commercial real estate collapse, the absence of a housing recovery, and even a double-dip recession. At Jaguar and Land Rover 15,000 manufacturing jobs were saved at last minute with government bail-out of some sort, but other legendary factories are closing or moving to better tax environments – notably including the Twinings tea company moving to Poland, its departure apparently the cultural equal of the New York Yankees re-locating to Mexico.
Work slow-downs and mini-strikes are just beginning. The morning I arrived at Heathrow, the immigration officers were all on a 2 day strike, and we disembarked the plane to face temporary officers, making the line crawl at half its normally slow speed. Welcome to Britain.
The news is also full of horror-stories from their health care system. Featured one day, a woman diagnosed with breast cancer then made to wait six months for treatment, by then too late; cancer metastasized. Her doctor-prescribed treatment, to cost 23,000 pounds, was eventually denied by the government health agency as “too expensive.” Delay, of course, is rationing. Doctor shortages. Rising costs and no money to pay them.
It was Margaret Thatcher’s 85thbirthday while I was there. To paraphrase her, sooner or later, a socialist government runs out of everybody else’s money. The sun is setting on the British Empire. Ours too.
If you want to see our future, visit England. Or France, now in its 7thweek of rioting and blockades. Or Greece. Their collapse will be ours, their strikes and street riots coming here soon. If we do not totally reverse course, this is our unavoidable destination. People here, for the most part, don’t yet see our situation for what it is, and the mainstream media is not presenting it anywhere near as dire as it is.
The government big enough to promise everybody everything they want must confiscate everything everybody has – and in our case, also borrow bazillions from China. Right now, Obama’s dog’s dinners are paid for by money borrowed from the Chinese. We should be panicked, angry and ashamed at such collective stupidity.
We should not “be calm and carry on.”
Posted: October 28th, 2010 | Permalink
How much do you know about John Lewis?
John Lewis has been Georgia's 5th District Congressional Representative for 24 years. But how much do you know about him? Does he really represent you? Read this background information and find out!---------------------------------------------------------------
* John Lewis has an admirable civil rights record from the 1960s. Now, 50 years later, the citizens of Georgia’s 5th Congressional District are very frustrated with their lack of leadership and representation in Congress.
* Since late 1986 when John Lewis was first elected to Congress, he has been one of the most staunchly liberal career politicians in the United States. First elected when he was just 47, John Lewis is now 70 years old and has been in Congress for almost 25 years. He has been re-elected 10 times without serious opposition and has been unopposed in every election since 2000. (Sources: Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The National Journal’s Almanac of American Politics 2008, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, NeighborNewspapers.com, John Lewis Official Website)
* The New York Times reports that John Lewis has one of the most liberal voting records in the House. He votes completely along party lines, siding universally with the Democratic Party and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, regardless of the views of the citizens of his district. (Voting Record, The Washington Post) (Adapted from The National Journal’s Almanac of American Politics 2008)
* During the past three decades he has been in office, he has been an outspoken liberal and a staunch opponent of the Iraq War. According to the Associated Press, he was “the first major House figure to suggest impeaching George W. Bush.” He was one of 31 House members who voted not to count the electoral votes from Ohio in the 2003 presidential election. He strongly defends racial quotas and preferences.
* Card-carrying member of the Democratic Socialists of America
* Lewis voted for and staunchly supported (and continues to support) Pres. Obama’s national health care reform law and the $787 billion federal stimulus program. He opposes any efforts to repeal the health care reform law and staunchly defends his vote in support of the stimulus program. (The Atlanta Journal- Constitution, June 22, 2010)A survey by Hewitt Associates predicts health care premiums in Atlanta will jump between 8% and 9% next year alone, in part due to the federal healthcare overhaul. (WGST on 10/11/10, Study: Metro Atlanta Healthcare Costs to hit Five Year High.)
* In its independent research, The New York Times reported that John Lewis had taken more privately financed trips than any other member of the U.S. House of Representatives, with more than 40 trips since 2007. (The New York Times, December 2009) Jack Pitney, professor of American politics at Claremont McKenna College in California, said congressional travel can serve a purpose, but “much of the time, however, the populist image happens to be true” and many congressional trips are “thinly veiled vacations.” (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Sept. 8, 2009, “On the Road Again, for Free”)
* John Lewis is considered by outside organizations to be one of the most liberal Democrats in Congress.The ACLU gave him a 90-plus rating for the Congressional session studied in a recent Atlanta Journal-Constitution article. Also for the same Congressional session analyzed, John Lewis missed 15% of all house votes. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Aug. 22,2010, “Numbers tell what lawmakers do, don’t”)
* Project Vote Smart lists evaluations of members of Congress given by assorted Special Interest Groups. In a year-by-year analysis of the past 10-plus years, John Lewis tended to strongly and consistently support the interests of:
ACORN
AFL-CIO
AIDS ACTION COUNCIL
AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES
AMERICAN IMMIGRATION LAWYERS ASSOCIATION
ARAB AMERICAN INSTITUTE
CITIZENS FOR GLOBAL SOLUTIONS
CHILDREN’S DEFENSE FUND
COUNCIL FOR A LIVABLE WORLD
COMMUNICATION WORKERS OF AMERICA
INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS
IRANIAN AMERICAN POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS
LEAGUE OF UNITED LATIN AMERICAN CITIZENS
LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE ON CIVIAL RIGHTS
NARAL PRO-CHOICE AMERICA
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF COLORED PEOPLE
NATIONAL COUNCIL OF LA RAZA
NATIONAL EDUCATION ASSOCIATION
NATIONAL FAMILY PLANNING AND REPROCTIVE HEALTH ASSOCIATION
NATIONAL HISPANIC LEADERSHIP AGENDA
NUCLEAR AGE PEACE FOUNDATION
PEACE ACTION
PLANNED PARENTHOOD
SOUTHERN ALLIANCE FOR CLEAN ENERGY ACTION FUND
STOP GUN VIOLENCE
UNITED AUTO WORKERS
In the past 10 years, John Lewis tended to strongly and consistently NOT SUPPORT the interests of:
AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE UNION
AMERICAN FAMILY ASSOCIATION
AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY
AMERICANS FOR IMMIGRATION CONTROL
CAMPAIGN FOR WORKING FAMILIES
CHRISTIAN ACTION NETWORK
CHRISTIAN COALITION OF AMERICA
CITIZENS AGAINST GOVERNMENT WASTE
EAGLE FORUM
FEDERATION FOR AMERICAN IMMIGRATION REFORM
GUN OWNERS OF AMERICA
HERITAGE ALLIANCE
HOME SCHOOL LEAGLE DEFENSE ASSOCIATION
LEAGUE OF PRIVATE PROPERTY VOTERS
NATIONAL JOURNAL OF CONSERVATIVE ECONOMIC POLICY
NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION
TRADITIONAL VALUES COALITION
U.S. BORDER CONTROL
* John Lewis currently earns an annual salary of $174,000, plus benefits and thousands more to run his office. He said to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he would give himself a B-plus for the 2010 Congressional session, “not for the legislation I’ve introduced, but for the positions I’ve taken on health care, job creation, social security,” he said.
Posted: October 18th, 2010 | Permalink
A Constituent's Letter to John Lewis
To Mr. Lewis,My husband and I are the first people in our families to graduate from college (on scholarship to West Point). Yes, we're black, so no you can't write us off as racists. We've worked hard, served our country on 4 different continents, and are finally at a place where we are each earning six figure incomes. We own our own family business in addition to working full time, and all I ever hear you say or do is to our detriment. You and the rest of the federal government already take HALF of our earnings in taxes/Social Security/etc. After we pay for Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps, and countless other government programs you keep voting for, we have 50% of our hard earned dollars left. Out of that 50% we have left, we have to buy our own health insurance, our own 401k (because even though we've paid over $100,000 into the SSA, we'll never see it), our own groceries, our ever increasing property taxes, and our own charitable giving.
Through a lot of prayer and hard work, we are debt free and operating in the black....unlike you've done with the other half of our money. You and Obama (who you've voted with literally every time) have run up our debt in less than a year and a half more than every other president in history combined. And you have the gall to try to say that it's for my own good. Not only is it not good for me, I have to fight you and your policies every day of my life just to try to take care of my family/business. And yet I hear you say time and again that I'm not doing my fair share. I want you to explain to me how my husband and I are not doing our fair share. We are doing exponentially more than our "fair share." Over 45% of the people in this country (and I'd wager a significantly higher percentage of those in the 5th) pay NOTHING AT ALL in taxes. Nothing. And as if that insult weren't already making my blood boil, now you are trying to adjourn and come home to try to get re-elected (I hope and pray you and your entitlement policies get voted out of office) without voting on the record about whether to extend my tax cuts, provided me by President Bush (who has done more for me than you ever did). In an economy that is already the worst its been in my lifetime, we are waiting to make business decisions for 2011 because we don't know what the tax penalties will be. And if you don't extend the Bush tax cuts, my family will be paying 60%ish of our income to you. IT'S RIDICULOUS AND UNACCEPTABLE for you to keep taxing me to death for trying to live the American Dream that is my birthright.
I want to know 1) what you think my fair share of taxes is (80%? 100%? Why not just go to work all day and then go to the food line to get bread and toilet paper from the government? Is that what you want?). 2) Why you are scared to vote for raising my taxes right before you come home to try to get re-elected 3) How on earth you sleep at night when you are leading America to live on credit (doesn't work for my family or yours, yet you think it should be fine for America) while we responsible Americans not only do our "fair share," we drag the rest of you along as well. I'd love to get your irresponsible spending, ill-conceived policies, and all the succubus non-taxpayers who keep living off the dole off my family's back. They can work their way through school, pay off student loans, work hard working multiple jobs, and live the American Dream just like we did. I shouldn't have to pay their way because they chose not to do so.
My husband and I grew up in the Atlanta public school system with single moms and all the odds stacked against us...and we made it. And we're both disabled veterans as a result of that journey, who would gladly do it all again. Don't you dare tell us we are not doing our fair share. And I don't want some canned form letter some staffer sends to try to get rid of me. I want a real response from you as to my concerns...after all, I am your employer. I have the right to hire you, fire you, and your paycheck is paid with the money you steal from me. I want answers.
Posted: October 13th, 2010 | Permalink
Projections for 2011 Taxes
This can be changed depending on what happens in November.--------------------------------------------------------------------------
In just three months, on January 1, 2011, the largest tax hikes in the history of America will take effect. They will hit families and small businesses in three great waves.
On January 1, 2011, here's what happens... (read it to the end, so you see all three waves)...
FIRST WAVE
Expiration of 2001 and 2003 Tax Relief: In 2001 and 2003, the GOP Congress enacted several tax cuts for investors, small business owners, and families. These will all expire on January 1, 2011.
Personal income tax rates will rise: The top income tax rate will rise from 35 to 39.6 percent (this is also the rate at which two-thirds of small business profits are taxed). The lowest rate will rise from 10 to 15 percent. All the rates in between will also rise.
Itemized deductions and personal exemptions will again phase out, which has the same mathematical effect as higher marginal tax rates. The full list of marginal rate hikes is below:
- The 10% bracket rises to an expanded 15%
- The 25% bracket rises to 28%
- The 28% bracket rises to 31%
- The 33% bracket rises to 36%
- The 35% bracket rises to 39.6%
The return of the Death Tax: This year only, there is no death tax. (It's a quirk!) For those dying on or after January 1, 2011, there is a 55 percent top death tax rate on estates over $1 million. A person leaving behind two homes, a business, a retirement account, could easily pass along a death tax bill to their loved ones. Think of the farmers who don't make much money, but their land, which they purchased years ago with after-tax dollars, is now worth a lot of money. Their children will have to sell the farm, which may be their livelihood, just to pay the estate tax if they don't have the cash sitting around to pay the tax. Think about your own family's assets. Maybe your family owns real estate, or a business that doesn't make much money, but the building and equipment are worth $1 million. Upon their death, you can inherit the $1 million business tax free, but if they own a home, stock, cash worth $500K on top of the $1 million business, then you will owe the government $275,000 cash! That's 55% of the value of the assets over $1 million! Do you have that kind of cash sitting around waiting to pay the estate tax?
Higher tax rates on savers and investors: The capital gains tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 20 percent in 2011. The dividends tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 39.6 percent in 2011. These rates will rise another 3.8 percent in 2013.
SECOND WAVE
Obamacare: There are over twenty new or higher taxes in Obamacare. Several will first go into effect on January 1, 2011. They include:
- The "Medicine Cabinet Tax": Thanks to Obamacare, Americans will no longer be able to use health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), or health reimbursement (HRA) pre-tax dollars to purchase non-prescription, over-the-counter medicines (except insulin).
- The "Special Needs Kids Tax": This provision of Obamacare imposes a cap on flexible spending accounts (FSAs) of $2500 (Currently, there is no federal government limit). There is one group of FSA owners for whom this new cap will be particularly cruel and onerous: parents of special needs children. There are thousands of families with special needs children in the United States, and many of them use FSAs to pay for special needs education. Tuition rates at one leading school that teaches special needs children in Washington , D.C. ( National Child Research Center ) can easily exceed $14,000 per year. Under tax rules, FSA dollars can not be used to pay for this type of special needs education.
- The HSA (Health Savings Account) Withdrawal Tax Hike: This provision of Obamacare increases the additional tax on non-medical early withdrawals from an HSA from 10 to 20 percent, disadvantaging them relative to IRAs and other tax-advantaged accounts, which remain at 10 percent.
THIRD WAVE
The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) and Employer Tax Hikes: When Americans prepare to file their tax returns in January of 2011, they'll be in for a nasty surprise - the AMT won't be held harmless, and many tax relief provisions will have expired. The major items include:
- The AMT will ensnare over 28 million families, up from 4 million last year: According to the left-leaning Tax Policy Center, Congress' failure to index the AMT will lead to an explosion of AMT taxpaying families-rising from 4 million last year to 28.5 million. These families will have to calculate their tax burdens twice, and pay taxes at the higher level. The AMT was created in 1969 to ensnare a handful of taxpayers.
- Small business expensing will be slashed and 50% expensing will disappear: Small businesses can normally expense (rather than slowly-deduct, or "depreciate") equipment purchases up to $250,000. This will be cut all the way down to $25,000. Larger businesses can currently expense half of their purchases of equipment. In January of 2011, all of it will have to be "depreciated."
- Taxes will be raised on all types of businesses: There are literally scores of tax hikes on business that will take place. The biggest is the loss of the "research and experimentation tax credit," but there are many, many others. Combining high marginal tax rates with the loss of this tax relief will cost jobs.
- Tax Benefits for Education and Teaching Reduced: The deduction for tuition and fees will not be available. Tax credits for education will be limited. Teachers will no longer be able to deduct classroom expenses. Coverdell Education Savings Accounts will be cut. Employer-provided educational assistance is curtailed. The student loan interest deduction will be disallowed for hundreds of thousands of families.
- Charitable Contributions from IRAs no longer allowed: Under current law, a retired person with an IRA can contribute up to $100,000 per year directly to a charity from their IRA. This contribution also counts toward an annual "required minimum distribution." This ability will no longer be there.
-
Now, your insurance will be INCOME on your W2's!: One of the surprises we'll find come next year, is what follows - - a little "surprise" that 99% of us had no idea was included in the "new and improved" healthcare legislation. Starting in 2011, your W-2 tax form sent by your employer will be increased to show the value of whatever health insurance you are given by the company. It does not matter if that's a private concern or governmental body of some sort. If you're retired? So what... your gross will go up by the amount of insurance you get.
You will be required to pay taxes on a large sum of money that you have never seen. Take your tax form you just finished and see what $15,000 or $20,000 additional gross does to your tax debt. That's what you'll pay next year.
For many, it also puts you into a new higher bracket so it's even worse.
This is how the government is going to buy insurance for the 15% that don't have insurance and it's only part of the tax increases.
Here is a research of the summaries.....
On page 25 of 29: TITLE IX REVENUE PROVISIONS- SUBTITLE A: REVENUE OFFSET PROVISIONS - (sec. 9001,
as modified by sec. 10901) Sec.9002 "requires employers to include in the W-2 form of each employee the aggregate cost of applicable employer sponsored group health coverage that is excludable from the employees gross income."
Posted: October 13th, 2010 | Permalink
Fenn Little Challenges John Lewis to a Debate
 |
Several groups have contacted John Lewis's office offering to host a debate. He has declined. I have now sent the following letter challenging him to a debate. Voters should have the opportunity to see their candidates debate. I will post any response I receive from him. In the meantime you may call his office at (404) 659-0116 encouraging him to accept the challenge.
DAYS 1-7: No Response
DAYS 8-14: No Response
DAYS 15-21: No Response
DAYS 22-29: No Response
Although John Lewis has not sent a response to the invitation, he did tell the local news, "I am not going to get involved in debating or attending meetings with someone unknown.” I still welcome the opportunity to debate the issues with John Lewis. I do not believe you have to be a celebrity to be a servant in congress.
| Related Documents | |
 | Debate Request Letter to John Lewis |
Posted: October 1st, 2010 | Permalink
