My Letter to the Editor of the Columbus Dispatch on My "Representative."

I recently received an email encouraging me to “Thank my Representative for supporting healthcare reform.” My “Representative” is Mary Jo Kilroy, and she did vote in favor of the House “Reform” bill, but I won’t be thanking her. I think it is safe to say that the most important issues for Ohioans is getting or keeping a job. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Ohio has an unemployment rate of 10.1%, up from 6.8% at this time last year. This puts Ohio in the bottom half of states in terms of the change in the unemployment rate, and tied for 13th in terms of the unemployment rate. So, what is my “Representative” doing to represent Ohio and my district? She voted for the House “Reform” bill which creates 111 new government bureaucracies. This bill is so bad that 39 democrats voted against the bill. The government will tell your insurance company what they need to cover and how much they can charge for the coverage. The cost of the House bill is over $1 trillion. Since the taxes and fees that we will pay for this kick in before the “benefits” are available, the cost is less than it would be if both the sources of revenue and costs were on an apples to apples basis in terms of timing. If that were done, the cost would exceed $2 trillion. Individuals would be penalized for not buying insurance, and employers would be penalized (8% of payroll) for not offering coverage. Over the 2010-2019 periods, individuals and employers would pay an estimated $168 billion as a result of these mandates. These are just two of the thirteen new tax increases that are part of the House version of “Reform.” This will no doubt discourage employers from hiring new employees, unless they absolutely need new workers. If you’re thinking about the comment “If you like your insurance, you can keep it,” forget about it. What is most enlightening is that by 2019 the Congressional Budget Office estimates that the number of uninsured will decrease by 36 million. 30 million of these will have insurance because they will be forced to buy insurance or because the government used our tax dollars to subsidize their premiums (why not, she voted to use our tax dollars to pay for abortions). Fifteen million of those with new insurance will be in the Medicaid program (which along with Medicare and Social Security) is dramatically underfunded. Only 6 million will be covered by the controversial “public option.” This job killing plan does not seem like reform as much as it seems like redistribution of wealth. It will redistribute wealth, to other states. With the 5.4% “surcharge” on individuals earning over $500,000, Ohio will have a top marginal tax rate of 54.3%. When the government gets over 50% of your income, look for many to relocate to lower tax states. It’s already happening in New York.




Mary Jo, was also kind enough to vote for the “Cap & Trade” legislation that will have a dramatic impact on Ohio and Ohio jobs. Mary Jo will tout all of the green jobs that Ohio will gain from this legislation, but that is a pipe dream. The John Birch Society estimates that this new tax will cost Ohio another 86,000 jobs. This is on top of the average family paying an additional $1,500 per year in energy costs. Again, this legislation was not without significant skepticism. The legislation passed the house by a vote of 219-212, with 44 democrats voting against it. In 2007, 84.2% of Ohio’s electric supply was generated from coal fired plants. Mary Jo wants us to believe that the jobs lost will be made up by “green“ jobs (wind & solar). Recent statistics suggest that only 0.8% of American energy supply is from wind and solar. Good luck replacing the lost jobs with green jobs. Spain made a concerted effort to cut CO2 emissions with a big push into green jobs. Their experience indicated that 2.2 jobs were lost for each green job created, with only 10% of the green jobs being permanent jobs. Nine years after the Spanish experiment with green jobs, CO2 emissions are up 50%!



Mary Jo was also kind enough to vote for “Cash for Clunkers,” which, in the initial phase cost taxpayers $3 billion. It is estimated that only 18% of the car sales were due entirely to the program. The other 82% would have bought new cars anyway. I’ll spare you the details on the tax credit that folks are getting to buy golf carts.



Mary Jo was also kind enough to vote for the “First time homebuyer credit.” The Treasury Department recently told Congress that at least 19,000 who filed for the credit had not bought a house. Another 74,000 were not first time home buyers. The government is pursuing more than 100 criminal investigations related to the credit. Given this stellar execution from those who want the government to run the healthcare system, Mary Jo voted to extend it.



These programs may keep you on your job for a while, but it’s not going to preserve this over the long term, nor is it going to create jobs. Until we stop with these band aid policies, Ohio will continue to deteriorate.



One must remember that this is what big government does. It’s like a runaway aircraft carrier. It’s not going to change course, it’s going to plow through anything that gets in its way. Think about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the enormous risks these two institutions took during the housing bubble. They continue to take risk with our tax dollars ($111 billion so far in capital infusions).



Mary Jo Kilroy is entrenched in the school of big government. She wants you to be dependent on Big Brother for most, if not all of your needs. If that is what you want, it’s your right to thank her. For me, I am not in the mood for gratitude.