Letter To A Young Democrat

Articles

Lanny Grant

Letter To A Young Democrat
June 7, 2003

I'm glad you are in high school and involved in politics. I think that is fantastic. And I'm glad you believe in something politically, even if it is the Democratic party. But those low-income families, who you are so happy are now getting the same $400 rebate per child as "the rest of America," pay little or no federal income taxes in the first place.

"According to IRS data," writes Daniel J. Mitchell, an economist at the Heritage Foundation, "the top one percent of income earners pay nearly 29 percent of the income tax burden, the top 10 percent pay more than 59 percent, and the top 20 percent pay more than 74 percent. The bottom 50 percent of income earners, on the other hand, pay less than five percent of income taxes."

So is it fair for a wealthy person, who has worked 70-80 hour weeks for years to have the wealth they have today, to pay their taxes, plus most of the taxes for someone who decided to skip college, not hold down a full time job, live paycheck to paycheck, and are generally unmotivated? That's not capitalism. This country is set up to where, if you want to be a success, you will be; IF you work hard, if you aim to better yourself, if you sacrifice little comforts along the way. Do not get caught up in the growing socialism of the Democratic party. Your party wants to takes as much money as they can from the rich and give it to what they call "the poor," which is mostly people who are lazy, undereducated, and don't want to utilize the gifts God has given them. Remember: the "rich" are the ones who own the companies and creates the jobs. You want to truly help the less fortunate, and I think you do, and I commend you for that, support Bush's tax cut. More money in the pockets of "the rich," i.e. business owners, means money for them to expand their business, which means new jobs created, which means more people needed to work these news jobs, which means more people spending, saving and investing, which means a better economy.

Conservatism is partially about helping people to help themselves. Giving welfare checks isn't helping people. We are the Big Business party, because Big Business is what creates jobs for people. You work hard at a job, you succeed, you feel good about yourself because you are earning your way and making a mark in life. The Democrats, on the other hand, want people to rely on government assistance. The Democratic party is based on "it's okay if you are lazy and don't want to go to college, or strive to be a productive member of society. The government will take care of you." That's socialism - taking money from the people who have it and giving it to the people who don't. That's the redistribution of wealth, not a free market; what our founding fathers was trying to accomplish.

The full article is here.

Again, I am glad you are young and interested in politics. Just look at issues honestly and decide for yourself. Always examine facts, not "I hate Bush, because I have to, because I'm a Democrat."

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