Chowder, Steamers and Politics

Rep. Donna Walsh & Senator Whitehouse

A nice sized delegation of Charlestown Democrats joined with hundreds of other supporters of the reelection bid of Senator Sheldon Whitehouse in Middletown on Sunday. We were all there at Kempenaar's Clambake club for a fund-raiser for Senator Whitehouse’s campaign and we were treated to a classic Rhode Island clambake, complete with steamers, lobster and chourico

There were speeches, of course, but hardly necessary for a crowd that was already bought in before they walked through the gate.

Mainly, it was a time to enjoy great food – and I might add, a pretty unusual bargain for a fund-raiser since the regular price to eat at Kempenaar’s is $45 and the cost of the ticket was $50 – and great company.

Senator Whitehouse is finishing his first term, though it seems like he’s a true veteran Senator, given the way he has championed the cause of working families against the attacks of Tea Party Republicans.

Hinckley's family builds nice boats
He should stick to what he knows

He faces one declared challenger so far, a Republican named Barry Hinckley. His family made its money building yachts. Hinckley has been a campaigner for a concept he called the Fair Tax, under which the country would abolish all federal personal and corporate income taxes, gift, estate, capital gains, alternative minimum, Social Security, Medicare, and self-employment taxes and replace it with a simple national sales tax. Hinckley would abolish the IRS and, by the way, repeal the 16^th Amendment of the Constitution.

The Fair Tax people say the national sales tax rate would be 23%.

Right.

Unless the Fair Tax plan Hinckley advocates would also abolish Social Security, Medicare and just about every other part of the federal government except the military, I think that 23% sales tax rate might just be a tad low.

Well, I’m sure there will be people attracted to this crackpot scheme’s purported simplicity. I am reminded about the frequent messages I got when I worked in the environmental movement from geniuses who were convinced the simplest solution to the problem of hazardous and nuclear was to load it into rockets and fire it into the sun.

Others will be attracted to the idea of abolishing the IRS. Like that Texas tax resistor who flew his light plane into the IRS offices in Austin, TX last year.

And, well, nobody likes taxes. Except taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society,

In June, I posted a 12 minute video of Hinckley’s fund-raising rap to a group of conservative Californians. Words can’t describe this video, other than to note that if you stick to it through the initial boring part, you will hear Hinckley’s analogy of the United States as a corporation.

Then watch Senator Whitehouse, speaking on the floor of the Senate, defending Pell Grants from being wiped out by Tea Party Republicans.

After you see these two videos, I hope you will appreciate how important it is to re-elect Senator Whitehouse and join us for a fund-raiser on his behalf in Charlestown on September 16 at the Charlestown Art Gallery. More details available on the Charlestown Democrats website this week or e-mail info@charlestowndemocrats.org. You can print out the form to reserve your ticket for the event here.

Author: Will Collette