Lies, Near Lies and Clinton Economics Pay Attention II

Just a few days ago, Bill Clinton appeared on national TV and wrote a big zero on a chart, proclaiming that his proposed 1999 federal budget will eliminate the deficit and in fact, will produce a surplus that could be used “to strengthen the Social Security system for the 21st century.” If you believe that story, stop now, because I want to talk to you about some Big Island volcano land that is on the market.

Pay attention! The real story is that Clinton is proposing the people of the United States pay more in taxes and fees than at almost any other time in the history of our country. Total federal taxes in 1999 will be $1.7 trillion, or 20.1 percent of everything America earns. The only time in U.S. history that taxes have been higher was during World War II, when it was 20.9 percent of national income in 1944 and 20.4 percent in 1945. By 1965, federal spending had fallen to just 17.6 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Clinton has said, “The era of big government is over.” Yet, during his time in office, total federal spending has increased 21 percent, while the consumer price index has risen less than 14 percent. Last year, federal spending increased by 4.4 percent in a year when the inflation rate was 1.7 percent. In the coming year, he wants to expand and extend the soon-to-be-bankrupt Medicare system, add $21 billion in child-care initiatives, federally support the hiring of 100,000 new teachers, boost education and job training spending by one-third, etc.

In addition, the federal government is hiring more “health-care police” to indict hospitals, clinics and physicians who misinterpret the Byzantine Medicare/Medicaid rules, “immigration police” to prosecute businesses who knowingly or unknowingly employ immigrants without complete documentation and thousands of others in regulatory and enforcement positions.

Some of the federal taxes and regulatory mandates are hard to identify. For example, beginning January 1998, the bill for my pager includes a charge for Federal Universal Service. This is a result of recent federal legislation mandating telecommunications carriers to contribute to a fund to ensure low service rates are maintained in rural, high-cost areas and to provide a service subsidy for certain low-income persons, schools, libraries and even health-care providers.

A portion of the proposal is smoke-and-mirrors, too. Some of the tax income relied upon to “balance” the budget might never happen, such as the proposed one-time tobacco settlement. Promising to balance the budget on that assumption is like my promising a bonus to all Outrigger employees if our Legislature authorizes a lottery, and I win on the first drawing.

But it has been packaged and presented to the American people with great fanfare as a zero deficit, balanced budget.

Pay attention! This is the same administration that has given us Webster Hubbell, James McDougal, “Filegate,” “Travelgate,” Whitewater, John Huang, Charlie Trie, fund-raising in a Buddhist Temple and “Naughtygate,” with Vernon Jordan, Gennifer Flowers, Paula Jones and Monica Lewinsky. This is the same administration that wants to put our young men and women, perhaps including members of the Outrigger O’hana, in harm’s way in Iraq without a clear objective, without the overwhelming support of Congress, and without widespread support by the international community.

Hawaii has four delegates in Congress, and several will be up for election this fall. Now is a great time to ask them and their potential opponents what they think about increasing federal spending, the involvement of the federal government in local school issues, increasingly burdensome regulatory mandates and the current Iraq crisis.

And when they reply, pay attention.