Please refer to yesterday’s entry about farm subsidies. You wonder why our tax dollars go to corporate farms and billionaires while prices and profits go up and our food prices skyrocket.
Here’s a clue. Eight senators and four house members collected $6.2 million in farm subsidies between 1995 and 2005. And, they got to vote on the bill that raised these benefits over the next five years. There is no shame in Washington. Here are the collectees and the amounts they took in over this period. Chuck Grassley R-Iowa: $878,854, Blanche Lincoln D-Ark: $715,000, Sam Brownback R-Kan: $643,000, Jon Tester D-Mont, $232,000, Max Bascus D-Mont $232,000, Richard Lugar R-Ind $126,555, Gordon Smith R-Ore $45,400 These are all senators. House members who collected: Marion Berry,D-Ark $2,357,094, Stephanie Herseth Sandlin D-S.D. $789,575, John Salazar D-Colo $161,085, and Dennis Hastert R-Il $25,000 for a total of $6,203,341.
Don’t feel bad for old Dennis Hastert. The old wresting coach spent 19 years in congress. He had a net worth of $290,000 when he went off to Washington. His salary was $77,400 when he started and $212,100 when he finished. He lived in Washington put two sons through college and ran that net worth up to $6,000,000 while serving his country.How did he do that? Astute investing in the stock market? No. The big lift came when he got a $207 million road to run by his landlocked property bringing the value up and making his farmland suddenly worth $4.5 million dollars. And, you bet he’s still applying for and getting his farm subsidy money on the $4.5 million property. How do all of our poor old politicians end up so rich? Our tax dollars, that’s how.
Oh, by the way Ted Turner and Scottie Pippin also get big checks from you through our government.
I’m sorry but our elected officials are far too busy taking care of their own balance sheets to worry about your little problems. Gas prices, have you heard any of the three candidates for president address the problem yet? No, and you won’t. They don’t have an answer, but soon you will read about another 50 cent per gallon increase from Washington ,since all three are in favor of the CO-2 cap. Some of you, when polled, told them you would be willing to pay more for gasoline to reduce CO-2 emissions. You had better stop lying to these good people and tell them you aren’t paying one red cent for this voodoo science before they stick it to you. They can cover their costs, just ask any of them on that list. They have feathered their nests at your expense for the next five years.
Hey Bill, so when are you going to buy some farmland?
My Uncle can hook you up in Missouri!
I guess I should have bought some farm land in Orland Park 30 years ago when I moved there, but only bought an 80 by 150 foot lot. What was I thinking? I also wish I would have been on the salary compensation committee at Amoco and BP so I too could have approved and increased my salary in order to afford the rising gas prices. Woulda, Coulda and Shoulda….
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