There was an essay written in 1867 that was published in
harper's magazine it was called “Not Yours to Give”. It's the story of Davey Crockett
as a congressman in the late 1820s. Like most stories of that vintage some will
argue that the story is an accurate account while others may say it is legendary. However, the
moral of the story is indisputable.
Davey Crockett had only served two terms in congress. On one
day, in congress, he was confronted with a bill to give money to the widow of a
military officer. Davy Crockett arose and gave this speech,
“Mr. Speaker, I have much respect for the memory of the
deceased and much sympathy for the suffering of the living. As any man in the house
suffers but we must not permit our respect for the dead or our sympathy for a
particular part of the living to lead us into an act of injustice.
We, the rest of the living, have the right as individuals to
give away as much of our own money as we please in charity. However, as members
of congress we have no right to take one dollar of the public money. I'm the
poorest man on this floor. I cannot vote for this bill but I will give a one
week's pay. I will give my salary for one week and if every member of congress
were to do this it will amount to more than this bill asks.”
When Crockett finished there was silence and remarkably the
bill failed. When later asked for an explanation he said, “A few years ago I
was standing one evening on the steps of the capitol when we saw a large great
light over Georgetown. It was a large fire. We jumped got on a horse and rode
over there as fast as we could. In spite of all that could be done many homes
were burned and many families were made homeless and some of them had lost all
but the clothes they had on. The weather was very cold and when I saw so many
women and children suffering, I felt that something must be
Done. The next morning a bill was introduced appropriating $20,000
for their relief. We put aside all of the business and rushed it through as
soon as it could be done.
Later in the year when Davy Crockett was back in Tennessee, he
ran into a constituent by the name of Horatio Bunts. Crockett asked him for his
vote and Horatio Bunts responded and said, “You'd better not waste your time on
my vote. I will not vote for you again. Your vote last winter shows that either
you have not the capacity to understand the Constitution or that you're lacking in honesty and
character to guide you. Because, for the Constitution to be worth anything it must
be held sacred and rigidly observed in all its provisions. The man who wields power and
misinterprets the Constitution is more dangerous the more honest he is. Horatio
Bunts continued, “No Colonel there's no mistake. The newspapers say that last
winter you voted for this bill to give $20,000 to some who suffered from a fire
in Georgetown. Is that true?
Congressman Crockett answered, “Well my friend I may as well
own up. You've got me there but certainly nobody would complain that a wealthy
country like ours couldn't give $20,000? The insignificant sum of $20,000 to
relieve the suffering women and children?”
Horatio Bunts replied, “Crockett, the power of collecting
and distributing other people’s money at pleasure is the most dangerous power
that can be entrusted to a man. While you are contributing to relieve one you
are drawing it from thousands who are even worse off than he if you had the
right to give anything. The amount was simply a matter of discretion with you
and you had as much right to give 20 million as to give 20,000. If you have the
right to give to one you have the right to give to all and as the Constitution
neither defines charity nor stipulates the amount you are at liberty to give to
any and everything which you may believe or profess to believe as a
charity and to any amount you may think proper. No, Colonel Crockett congress
has no right to give charity. Individual members may give as much of their own
money as they please but they have no right to touch a dollar of the public money for that
purpose. If twice as many houses had burned in this county in Tennessee as had
in Georgetown neither you nor any other members of congress would have thought
of appropriating a dollar for our relief.”
Bunts informed Crockett that, “If each congressman had shown
their sympathy for the fire victims by giving one week's pay it would have
nearly covered the cost but it was easier simply to give other people's money. The
people at Washington no doubt applauded you for relieving them from the
necessity of giving by giving what yours was not to give. The people have
delegated congress by the Constitution the power to certain things. To do these
it is authorized to collect and pay monies and for nothing else. Everything
beyond this is usurpation and a violation of the Constitution. So, you see Colonel
you have violated the Constitution in what I consider a vital point. It is a
precedent filled with danger to the country. When congress begins to stretch
its power beyond the limits of the Constitution there is no limit to it and no
security for the people.”
Today we are faced with a vastly greater sum of money than $20,000.
We are faced with 40 billion dollars to be gifted to Ukraine. A noble cause no
doubt. A cause for which we have great sympathy and support but a cause for
which the Constitution does not sanction or approve of. Now we could ask, as Davy
Crockett did, if each member of the Senate would like to contribute
individually to Ukraine but of course that would simply serve to demonstrate
the enormity of the gift. To come up with 40 billion dollars each
Senator would need to give 400 million dollars. Not a likely
scenario. It's much easier to spend such exorbitant amounts if you're spending
someone else's money. But even if the senators won't agree to contribute their
own money surely, we're a rich country and can afford it. Well not exactly. The
us debt now approaches 30 trillion dollars. In the past two years alone, we
have added nearly 6 trillion dollars in new debt. Inflation roars throughout
the land. Grocery bills are punishing the working class and poor and gas prices
exceed 4 dollars. Even before the pandemic bailouts for our country was running
a trillion dollar annual deficit just to pay for its routine commitments. Putting
aside the constitutionality of the 40 billion dollars to Ukraine, isn't there a
more fiscally responsible way this could be done? What about taking the 40 billion
from elsewhere in the budget.
The US spends more on our military than the eight countries around
Ukraine combined. Couldn't congress simply shift over the 40 billion and not add
to the debt in the defense of Ukraine. If the defense of Ukraine is really in
our national security interest shouldn't the gift come from our military budget?
What about cutting wasteful spending? We have a cataloged of over 50 billion
dollars in wasteful spending.
I don't know about you but couldn't we cut programs like the
million dollar study to see if taking selfies of yourself while smiling and
then looking at these selfies later on if that makes you feel good?
Couldn't we cut the budget of the national science
foundation that spends billions of dollars studying such burning questions as do
Panamanian city frogs have a different mating call than the country frogs.
Couldn't we maybe cut the 2 million the NIH spent studying cafeterias
to see if someone in front of you sneezes on the food whether you're more or
less likely to eat that food.
Couldn't we maybe cut the money spent on Japanese quail studying
whether or not they're more sexually promiscuous or not when you give them
cocaine.
If we're not willing to cut the budget at all couldn't we
ask the American people to stay up and pay a war tax? If this is really for our
national security it should be very popular with the people. Why don't we offer
to tax them in exchange for this.
Guess what? The American people don't want this nonsense. Their
representatives don't want to pay any taxes for this they just say put it on
Americas tab. We've been doing that for decades and that's why we have a 30
trillion dollar debt and that's why we have roaring inflation. If you want to
pay for this with a tax you could triple the gas tax. I’m guessing that's going
to be really popular and people really want to send this money so badly that
they'd be willing to triple the gas tax.
If we were honest, that's what the people who were for this
would propose. Now that would guarantee 6 dollar gas for the foreseeable future.
Alternatively, congress could raise the income tax about 5 hundred dollars for
every American taxpayer. I'm sure that would be popular and for the people who
think it's a great idea to send 40 billion dollars overseas why don't they just
be honest with people and tax them. Here's your bill Mr. and Mrs. America. 5
hundred dollars a taxpayer and then would it be paid for? No. It's like everything else put it on our tab, Uncle Sam's tab, is
full. It is complete.
To be clear I’m not for raising taxes to finance Ukraine’s
defense but it's irresponsible to simply borrow more money. To borrow the money
from China simply to send it to Ukraine. Makes no sense and makes us weaker not
stronger. Let's be honest most of congress doesn't seem to care about the debt.
Doesn't seem to care how much money we shovel out the door and out of the country.
Why? Because it's not their money. Everyday Milton Friedman’s statement has
proven correct, that “nobody spends somebody else's money as wisely as their
own.” I doubt the big spenders in congress
will ever consider spending any of their own money but Americans
across the land should sit up and take notice and attach blame to these
profligate spenders. In the past 5 months bipartisan majorities republicans and
democrats have added over 100 billion dollars to the debt. Now these same big spenders are proposing
another 50 billion dollars next week to bail out restaurants. Restaurants that
have been primarily injured by overzealous democrat governors and their edicts.
There are ramifications to this mountain of debt. Make no mistake, inflation is
here and it's rip-roaring and, on the rise.
Just as aiding the victims of fire in Georgetown during the
days of Davy Crockett ignored the misfortune of the suffering people in lands
too distant from Washington to be noticed so too does today's deficit spending
to be sent overseas ignores the pain and suffering and the inflation that is caused
by that debt on everyday American families.
Inflation is simply an increase in the money supply. It
comes from the federal reserve buying the US debt. M2 is a measure of the money
supply. For the last three years it's been going up at about a 15 percent rate.
So we shouldn't really be surprised that there's inflation because inflation is an increase in the
money supply. In January of last year the annualized rate of the M2 expansion,
the monetary expansion, was 27 percent. No one should be shocked we have
inflation. We have rising prices in the grocery store. We have rising prices at
the pump because we borrowed too much money. We went heavily in debt and the
federal reserve is buying the debt. All of this so-called free money floods the
market and chases prices higher. Adding to our debt will only make the problem
worse. So, yes our national security is threatened but not by Russia’s war on Ukraine
but by congress's war on the American taxpayer. The vast majority of Americans sympathize
with Ukraine and want them to repel the Russian invaders but if congress were honest they'd take the money from elsewhere in
the budget or ask Americans to pay higher taxes or heaven forbid loan the money
to Ukraine instead of giving it to Ukraine. But congress will do what congress
does best, spend other people's money. – Senator Paul
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