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Chairman's Report - January 4, 2019

THE ELITE SEEK A REWARD FOR THEIR FAILURES

Most people in America still believe in the basic principle that to get more of something you should reward it.  We know that if children find that they can get what they want by screaming and throwing a tantrum every time someone says no, they will use screaming and tantrums as a way of addressing anything they don’t like.
 
If an employee who is habitually late, makes many errors and is more interested in looking at social media than working is given the same raise as other employees who are on-time, work hard and concentrate on their job—the company will be sending a message to the hard-working employee that they can get the same pay but are actually somehow stupid for working diligently.
 
In a more basic example, we want to stop people stealing and we have laws.  Unfortunately, we are seeing that for most of us, if we are caught stealing then we are prosecuted.  However, if we are part of the Elite then it becomes, as Bill Clinton famously said, “It depends on what the definition of “Is” is.”
 
Daily we see examples of members of the Elites being shown to be guilty of crimes for which others are jailed, but they are protected by other members of the Elites by either ignoring the facts or twisting them. 

COMMON SENSE EVALUATION OR ELITE EVALUATION OF THE RESULTS

If you had a company and the manager and employees did the following what would you think:

  • Participated in or didn’t stop amassing a $21 trillion dollar debt;
  • Participated in or didn’t stop spending that exceeded income by over $800 billion per year;
  • Participated in or didn’t stop making the income/payroll tax law more complicated;
  • Participated in or didn’t stop the rapidly increasing likelihood that Social Security and Medicare are going to be bankrupt in just a few years;
  • Participated in or didn’t stop the rapidly escalating evasion of the income/payroll tax system;
  • Participated in or didn’t stop the policy of legislative favors to the groups who contributed the most to them;
  • Participated in or didn’t stop the ability of people to pass complicated legislation and then go to work at high salaries for lobbying groups selling access to how to best benefit from that same legislation;
  • Participated in or didn’t stop laws and regulations that would make it harder for smaller companies to compete because the smaller companies don’t have the resources to easily comply even though it is detrimental to the shareholders of the larger companies.   

Would you thank them and be delighted to hear that they were going to work for groups in D.C. who they had benefited for huge amounts of money?

An article published by MarketPlace.org revealed the following:

  • A hundred members of the House and Senate will leave Capitol Hill early next year when the new Congress is sworn in. 
  • The Ways and Means and Finance Committee members and their staffs are among the most sought after.
  • Legally, former Members can’t become registered lobbyists for a year if they were in the House and two years for the Senate. But “they can act as senior advisers, strategic advisers,” said Sheila Krumholz, head of the Center for Responsive Politics, “directing the lobbying troops from the rear.”
  • Krumholz said, “Some of them are collecting seven-figure salaries, and there are also the bonuses which they can collect if they’re successful in their lobbying campaigns for clients.”Krumholz said right out of the gate, a Congressional pedigree typically translates to a $100,000 salary bump. And those exiting members who don’t snag a lobbying gig have lots of other options at think tanks and trade associations. And they know how to job hunt. After all, each one of them has convinced thousands and thousands of voters, sometimes year after year, that they’re the only person for the job.
CONCLUSION
 
There was a trial between two miners with competing claims in a boom town during the California gold rush. The judge opened the proceedings by announcing that at 7:00 AM the attorney for the plaintiff came to my quarters and gave me $10,000 in gold.  At 7:30 AM the attorney for the defendant came to my quarters and gave me $10,000 in gold.  Now we can have a fair trial.
 
Members of Congress seem to operate with the same philosophy of the judge. Anytime there is an issue that will affect one part of an industry over another part, the money pours in and both Democrats and Republicans find that tickets to their fund-raising events are the hottest tickets in town as the lobbyists see that all the most expensive tickets are purchased.
 
Then, when their time in Congress is over, the Members can look forward to lucrative jobs collecting from all sides to influence legislation that benefits not the rest of us but a few who can afford to pay for the legislation they want. 
When you wonder about why the FAIRtax is not supported by the Members of the House Ways And Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee, look at Ms. Krumholz’s statement about how desirable these Members and their staffs are to lobbying firms.  Obviously, they would lose that value if the income/payroll tax system was replaced by the FAIRtax. 
 
Does this make our job to pass the FAIRtax hopeless?  No! 
 
We must remember the words of Sun Tzu in his classic, The Art of War.  “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”

We know the enemy and ourselves.  In the Swamp they consider the rest of us who object to their actions as the enemy but they don’t know us.  They assume that we must have the same motivations as they do.  They assume that we must have personal greed involved. 
 
In truth, many of these Swamp members don’t know themselves because they have convinced themselves that what they are doing is not corrupt and a violation of their obligations to the citizens but is ethical and proper.  They will succumb.  We just need to persist.
 
It is time to PASS THE FAIRTAX! 
 
The truth is the truth.  Remember, if we don't continue to tell the truth and demand a change, then this quote from George Orwell's 1984 may foretell our children's future:

“If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever.”


WHAT CAN EACH OF US DO
 

Call up the local or D.C. offices of your House Member and two Senators and you can use the following script:
  • I am sure that Representative ____ or Senator ____ is in favor of everyone obeying the income tax laws.
  • After they assure you that their boss is not in favor of anyone breaking the law, ask if they are aware of the Cebula study showing $9 trillion of evaded income/payroll taxes over the next ten years.
  • Since most will say they don’t believe their boss has seen the study, either drop off a copy or get an email address and send a copy to them for their boss.
  • Say you are going to call back in a week and ask what the Representative or Senator is going to do to stop this evasion.
  • In a week, call back and ask specifically what the Representative or Senator is going to do to enforce the law.
  • They probably will say their boss believes that simplifying the income tax will handle the problem.
  • Explain that when people evade income taxes, they are also evading the 15.3% payroll/Medicare tax and state income tax.  So it is unlikely that they are going to pay 30% or 40% when they were paying 0% because they have already decided it is okay to cheat.
  • Say that the only way to reduce evasion is to increase by tens or hundreds of thousands the number of comprehensive IRS audits done each year.
  • Point out that Evaders do not self-identify by putting an “E” on their income tax return.
  • 80% of the people likely to be audited are trying to comply, but they will be forced to endure these IRS audits as well.
  • Ask if the Member is in favor of this?
  • If they say no, then ask again how the Member proposes to stop people breaking the income tax laws.
  • Then explain that the way to handle evasion without unleashing the IRS audits is the FAIRtax.  

If you can see your Member or attend a town hall and ask these questions, you can be even more effective.


FAIRTAX POWER RADIO
 
FAIRtax Power Radio continued to broadcast during the holidays. Here’s a recap of the last three shows.
 
#139 FAIRtax Volunteers Across the USA
 
Special guest Jim Bennett, Grassroots Coordinator for AFFT, talks about some of the many volunteers all around the country that are working hard to promote the FAIRtax and the great variety of activities they are engaged in. 
 
Some are setting up info booths at colleges. Some are pushing statewide FAIRtax legislation thru their legislature.  We have volunteers who manage our national database.  One volunteer is pioneering a “Boots On The Ground” program to promote more interest in his home district.  Listen for many more examples
 
Jim also explains what someone, anyone can do who might want to get a FAIRtax promotional effort going in their locality.  There are plenty of activities one can engage in; see what suggestions appeal to you.  Listen and Learn how YOU can help spread the word about the FAIRtax in your area.
 
#140 Candy Canes and Lumps of Coal
 
The FAIRtax Guys hand out Candy Canes or Lumps of Coal depending on the recipients support for he FAIRtax.  The Guys also talked about forming a coalition with the Convention of States organization. 
 
Who do you think deserves a Candy Cane for their good work in tax reform and who deserved a Lump of Coal?  See if you agree with The FAIRtax Guys .
 
Then listen as we delve into the subject of grassroots support groups helping each other.  The Convention of State is another national organization looking to change how things are done in Washington.  We believe the FAIRtax volunteers and the COS volunteers should work closely together and promote each others’ goals and ideas.
 
#141 IRS Puts the Hammer Down - On Us!
 
The FAIRtax Guys use a report from Morning Tax that helps demonstrate why the income tax is a failed system and then use Bob's talents to bring out more benefits of the FAIRtax. Happy New Year! 
 
Recorded a few weeks ago, this show kicks off the new year with some great information and more reasons to support the FAIRtax. 
 
Listen to all our free podcasts or watch the videos of each show. Details below.
 
If you believe the FAIRtax is good for America, let others know by turning them onto FAIRtax Power Radio - the ONLY weekly FAIRtax digital TV show in the country!  Watch every Wednesday at 11:30 AM (ET).  We are streaming to Facebook LIVE (www.facebook.com/fairtax).  If you’re not a fan of Facebook, you can watch the show on www.xcluded.tv at the same broadcast time - or any time. 
 
FTPR podcasts for each show are posted on Spreaker (http://bit.ly/2oesbk7), iTunes & iHeart Radio every Friday morning.  A free FAIRtax Power Radio app is available for iOS and Android.  Since it’s a podcast, you can download it and play it whenever it’s convenient for you.
 
The FTPR weekly episodes are Shared to a number of Facebook pages:

www.xcluded.tv is a subscription based site which costs $30 per year and features a number of other shows along with FTPR with no commercial interruption.
 
Please help us educate as many Americans about the FAIRtax as possible.  Be sure to tell everyone you know about this great new format for FAIRtax Power Radio.  Whether you watch the weekly video or listen to the weekly podcast, this is a great way for more Americans to learn about the best tax reform plan in Congress at this time.
 
Tune into our video broadcast each Wednesday.  Or, if you prefer, you can listen to the podcast of the show later.  You can listen to FTPR on any platform - Mac or PC, iPhone or Android. And it’s 100% free.  Listen on Spreaker.com (http://bit.ly/2oesbk7), iTunes (http://apple.co/1Te8VdF) or iHeart Radio (http://bit.ly/2eqEG7y) on your computer or smartphone.  The easiest way to listen to FTPR on your smartphone is by downloading the free FTPR app.  Just search for “FAIRtax Power Radio” in your app store, download the app and start listening.  
 
Remember, FTPR digital TV every Wednesday at 11:30 AM (ET) followed by the podcast on Friday morning.  Please listen and tell everyone you know about the FAIRtax Power Radio.  The FAIRtax: Once You Understand It, You’ll Demand It!
 
NEED A WAY TO INTRO THE FAIRTAX TO A NEWBIE?
HERE IT IS - AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION
 
America’s Big Solution provides a starting point in your study the FAIRtax and is meant for people of any age.  And you can download it to your tablet or smartphone right now.  It’s also available in print form.  See below.

Do you know someone who would like an introduction to the FAIRtax and would prefer to read about it in a booklet rather than search online for Tweets, Posts and Shares?  If so, America’s Big Solution is their best choice.
 
America’s Big Solution is an introduction to the FAIRtax written by Terry Tibbetts, author of A Spartan Game: The Life and Loss of Don Holleder, with help from Ron Maiellaro, President of the Florida FAIRtax Educational Association.  
 
You can buy an electronic version of ABS as follows:  AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION is available for only $2.99 for the Amazon Kindle (http://amzn.to/1WIRHry), the Barnes & Noble Nook (http://bit.ly/1XeG8bH) and Apple iOS (http://apple.co/1tnqK0P).  
 
You can purchase a print copy at the same Amazon link above for $9.25.  Regardless of whether you choose the electronic format or the print format, you’ll find AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION will give someone the boost they need to begin their study of the FAIRtax and the suggested resources to learn more. Buy AMERICA’S BIG SOLUTION now!
 
LINKS TO MORE INFORMATION
 
These links will help you promote and support the FAIRtax, make yourself familiar with the links below. We always do our best to keep our AFFT community up to date, and you can stay ahead of the curve using these convenient sites.

 
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