The Soviet Poitiburo - American Style

Charles Rangel, Congressman from New York, got me thinking today about how the American political class is starting to look more and more like the old days of the Soviet Union with its Politburo and Central Committee. Mr. Rangel is in the news again for neglecting to pay taxes and disclosing assets that he had. This follows the allegations last September about how he neglected to declare earnings from rental properties he owned. I will not go into the details here, there are plenty of credible Internet sources that document in great detail his tax misgivings.

The tragic thing about Mr. Rangel's tax dealings is that he is the chairman of the House Ways and Mean Committee, the powerful committee that oversees and writes the nation's tax code. You would think that someone in his position would be better able to pay his taxes correctly, if he WANTED to. Unfortunately, Mr. Rangel's tax avoidance, whether intentional or not, is totally consistent with so many of Washington's politicians: Treasury Secretary Geithner ($34,000 in back taxes), Ex-Senator Tom Daschle ($130,000), Kathleen Sebelius ($7,000), Ron Kirk ($10,000), Nancy Keiffer, etc. The list seems to go on and on.

That brings me to the Politburo and Central Committee. These two Soviet groups basically dictated all aspects of Soviet life throughout the decades of the last century. They were accountable only to themselves and basically had jobs for life. The rules and rewards were better and different for them as compared to ordinary Soviet citizens. The founders of our country had different ideals, they wanted everyone in America to be equal in opportunity regardless of who they were or what they did for a living. They would be appalled by the way the American political class has involved into an elite "club" with all of the trappings of the Politburo and Central Committee. By controlling election processes, a politician basically stays in office for as long as they want with all of the perks they have voted for themselves: high salaries, best medical care, lucrative retirement programs, free car usage, (House Of Representatives only) and apparently, immunity from violating tax laws. Stalin, Lenin , and the rest of the Red gang would be proud.

"Love My Country, Loathe My Government" proposes a small fix that would start the breakup of this elitism and blatant disregard for the tax laws that the rest of us have to endure and obey or face the consequences. Under Step 5 on page 20, the book proposes that all members of Congress, the President, Vice President, and all Cabinet heads immediately have their tax returns audited for the past few years and the results made public. In order to have any kind of credibility to govern, those that are governed have to believe that everyone is treated the same under the law, unlike the members of the Politburo and Central Committee.

Tomorrow - Another view on the American Politburo and Central Committee analogy,