Tomorrow marks the 20th anniversary of 9/11. I would like to share my experience. On September 10, 2001, I was at a meeting in the Pentagon talking about wasteful Defense spending. On September 11, 2001 I was at home waiting for a FedEx package (I lost my wallet and the person who found it was sending it back to me) watching the Univision morning show, ¡Despierta America!. I was watching this show trying to improve my Spanish. I saw the first tower on fire and wasn't sure what was happening. I thought it was the World Trade Center but wasn't sure what had happened, so I turned to an English speaking station. Being in DC and one day removed from actually being in the Pentagon I was in shock and I was angry. I kept on flipping news stations looking for updates. That day seemed to last forever. On September 12, 2001, I went for a run (by the DC monuments) as part of my training for the Chicago Marathon. Running by the White House and down by the National Mall was very emotional. I stopped by the Lincoln Memorial and took a few moments to reflect and try to process what had happened the day before. The past 20 years has flown by. I have seen many changes in the city because of what happened on 9/11. I hope everyone has a chance to reflect on 9/11 and the past 20 years this weekend. I’m not going to make any political or policy statements, I just wanted to take a moment to share my experience.
Groups Say “No” to Reconciliation
The Taxpayers Protection Alliance spearheaded a coalition letter this week with 12 other consumer and taxpayer groups urging U.S. senators to oppose the budget reconciliation bill when it comes to the floor for a final vote. In these difficult economic times, the nation needs a fiscally responsible budget, not a $3.5 trillion spending bill paid for by hard-working Americans. The full text of the letter can be found here. A special thank you to American Commitment, American Consumer Institute, Americans for Prosperity, Americans for Tax Reform, Center for a Free Economy, Center for Freedom and Prosperity, Center for Individual Freedom, Competitive Enterprise Institute, FreedomWorks, Libre Initiative, National Taxpayers Union, and the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council for signing the letter.
Here are a couple of excerpts from the letter:
The $3.5 trillion proposal is not a “path for progress for Americans” as some supporters claim, but rather a mixed bag of higher taxes and increased spending for which taxpayers will ultimately be responsible if the legislation passes. The call for higher taxes is unwelcome news for Americans who, over the last four years, have reaped the benefits from the long overdue tax reforms put in place by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. Lower tax rates and expanded tax credits enabled hard-working families to keep more money in their pockets, leading to an increase in real disposable income that was then pumped back into the economy. All told, a Tax Policy Center analysis found that in 2018, an astonishing 65 percent of American households received a tax cut. Likewise, the nation’s business—small and large—finally received relief from an astronomically high corporate tax rate and were able to expand, invest, and create more jobs.
The Biden Administration and Democratic congressional leadership had an opportunity to assemble a responsible budget that preserved those benefits for Americans while mitigating the damage wrought on our economy by the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, this budget package does neither and contains a laundry list of divisive programs with a price tag in the trillions of dollars and tax increases on families and job creators. It is irresponsible spending that will send the nation spiraling further into debt. The harmful tax hikes are astonishingly tone deaf to the ongoing struggles of hard-working taxpayers who will foot the final bill. All that extravagant spending needs to be offset, however, and to do so, the budget proposes drastically transforming a crucial Medicare prescription drug program relied on by millions of Americans. As you are aware, the federal government is barred from interfering with the private price negotiations between Medicare Part D plans, drug manufacturers, and the program’s pharmacies. This non-interference (NI) clause was put in place for a very good reason: allowing government bureaucrats to dictate to the private sector what prices it must charge would stifle innovation, leaving patients more vulnerable as access to medicines becomes restricted.
Trillions of dollars in spending, tax increases, and price controls are not the cure for what ails the nation; rising inflation, still-anemic economy, and a pandemic-weary population. Americans have the right to expect policies from Congress that keep them on their feet, not knock them down.
A Baltimore Ghost (Student) Story
More than 6 months ago, Project Baltimore unveiled a major investigation showing that the Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts passed students with low GPAs and that “ghost” students (kids enrolled that didn’t attend classes) were at the school. Six months later, Maryland education officials want their money back from Augusta Fells. This problem exemplifies the problems that has been occurring in Baltimore City for a number of years, According to Fox Baltimore, “41% of all Baltimore City high school students, earned below a 1.0 grade point average. In other words, nearly half of the 20,500 public high school students in Baltimore earned less than a D average.” And even before the days of distance learning, roughly a quarter of students were at or below a 1.0 GPA. All of this happens under the watch of Baltimore City Public Schools CEO Sonja Santelises, who rakes in more than $300,000 a year.
This lackluster performance isn’t due to a lack of funding. Federal, state, and local taxpayers spend an astounding $16,000 per Baltimore student, a total matched by few large school districts. Yet it’s clear there’s a problem when students listed as “enrolled” in Baltimore schools are not even showing up in the morning. Even the simple task of replacing a school’s roof takes three contractors and more than $1 million (to repair the work improperly done by the first two contractors). Millions of dollars’ worth of boiler repairs and door and window upgrades are green-lit and paid for but ultimately not accomplished . Meanwhile, HVAC equipment goes without being inspected or serviced for years, jeopardizing the comfort and safety of students and leading to higher costs down the road. And too often, the school system’s failures are downright criminal. The Baltimore Brew reports, “Between 2004 and 2008, 11 city school maintenance and facilities employees, including the head of facilities management, were criminally convicted in a corruption scheme that had operated since at least 1991.”
For all these problems, policymakers have few answers other than to throw more money at a broken system. Fortunately, some principals at relatively successful Baltimore schools have found reforms that seem to work. Commodore John Rodgers Elementary/Middle School principal Marc Martin champions greater flexibility in allowing principals to hire and fire the staff they see fit. In addition, Martin advocates for successful principals to mentor less experienced principals instead of hiring pricey turnaround consultants. Tying taxpayer dollars to innovative school governance would shake up the broken status quo and offer struggling Baltimore students a chance to succeed. In addition, policymakers should explore the possibility of funding students instead of broken systems. With education tax credit dollars, Baltimore parents and students can have access to the resources that only well-off families can afford. One-on-one tutoring works for many students, but it is an expensive solution and one out of reach for many low-income students. Educational software such as Rosetta Stone can be more effective than years of traditional foreign language instruction, but this online learning is also costly. Parents can opt to send their kids to a better school out of their county, but it will cost them thousands of dollars on top of their property taxes. Ditto, of course, with private schools.
Allowing dollars to follow students would be a welcome alternative to the broken status quo and empty report promises. The waning of COVID-19 gives policymakers and the Baltimore school system a rare opportunity to break with the past and embrace innovative reforms. Only time will tell if they do what’s best for struggling Charm City students.
BLOGS:
MEDIA:
September 6, 2021: Vaping Today ran TPA’s op-ed (in Spanish), “La búsqueda desesperada de una amenaza para la salud en las bolsas de nicotina.”
September 7, 2021: Inside Sources ran TPA’s op-ed, “Top Tobacco Researchers: It’s Time to Re-Think Anti-Vape Policies.”
September 7, 2021: The Sentinel & Enterprise (Westford, Mass.) ran TPA’s op-ed, “No need to send humans on pricey space trips.”
September 7, 2021: WBFF Fox 45 (Baltimore, Md) quoted TPA in their story, “Hogan, Frosh pointing fingers over legal fees from unemployment lawsuits.”
September 7, 2021: The Center Square ran TPA’s op-ed, “Legislative progress toward broadband in Tennessee a mixed bag.”
September 8, 2021: WBFF Fox 45 (Baltimore, Md) quoted TPA in their story, “Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby under scrutiny over documentary.”
September 8, 2021: The Center Square ran TPA’s op-ed, “Current reform proposals would paper over postal problems.”
September 9, 2021: I appeared on WBOB 600 AM (Jacksonville, Fla.) to talk about unemployment and the debt ceiling.
September 9, 2021: WBFF Fox45 (Baltimore, Md.) interviewed me about ghost students at Augusta Fells Institute for Visual Arts.
September 9, 2021: The Daily Mail quoted TPA in their story, “Fury as Biden tries to let IRS SNOOP on your bank accounts.”
Have a great weekend!
