Motivation Monday ~ Something Happened on My Way Through the Newspaper Today

Aug. 19, 2012 - PRLog -- On Saturday, August 18, 2012, there were two stories that struck me.  I thought, isn’t this the entire political debate wrapped in the fibers of these two stories.  One was a Business Story, “Unions Upset Over Bandwidth Deal,” and the other is a Political Story, “Ryan Releases Tax Returns, Tops Romney’s Rate."

In the business article it seems that Verizon has made a deal with several other cable companies to purchase bandwidth from them in order to expand the reach of their FiOS product.  Here is the quote from the Communication Workers of America, “They can now offer new cable service without a FiOS buildout, and that will wipe us out.”

I find it striking that here in America…the home of capitalism. When a business is competing and trying to grow, that organized labor feels as though they should have to go through them?  The sense of “entitlement.”  Yes, I said it, “entitlement.” That somehow in America, if you are a business in a competitive industry and you are trying to expand, which demands that you try to keep things as lean as possible, that somehow the head of a union would make such as comment.  Rather than finding a way to work with Verizon or help them in their endeavor and become a valuable resource, they would rather file complaints and make the argument that they somehow deserve being a part of the process even though they are responsible for driving up the cost.

I don’t know when the saying was created, but I would assume that we have all heard the saying, “the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.”

In America, individuals, like companies want to be as efficient as possible and try to keep as much of their income as possible…without breaking the law...it's capitalism, right?

It was after I read the political article about Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney’s tax returns that the epiphany happened.

The media, as well as the Obama campaign, not so coincidentally, seems to be pushing this idea that Mitt Romney should release more of his tax returns.  There seems to be a preoccupation with the tax rate that he has paid. The article states, “Ryan (R-Wis.) paid an effective federal tax rate of 15.9 percent in 2010 and a 20 percent in 2011.”
The article goes on to bring Mitt Romney’s tax returns into question again even though he has released the required two years of tax returns.  The article states, “Romney said Thursday he has paid at least 13% of his income in federal taxes in each of the past 10 years.   …Romney paid about $3million in federal income taxes in 2010 for an effective rate of 13.9 percent. For 2011, Romney’s campaign estimates that he will pay about $3.2 million for an effective federal tax rate of 15.4 percent.”

So, at this point, I’m thinking, that’s a lot of money in taxes!  He is paying more in taxes in one year than most Americans pay in a lifetime.  The quick calculation is that he has paid over $30 million in taxes over the past 10 years.  That’s a lot of money!

And as I finished the article, that’s when it hits me !  BAM!!!  

The article concludes, “President Barrack Obama and his wife reported paying $162,074 in federal taxes last year on $789,674 in adjusted gross income, for an effective tax rate of 20.5 percent.”

Do you get it?  

To me, these two stories bring the entire political debate down to some really simple discussions.

The Obama campaign and the media keep focusing on Mitt Romney’s tax returns and tax rates as though he has done something wrong or suggesting that he somehow has not paid enough or a high enough rate.

Go back to the idea of America and the “American dream” is about “capitalism” and the saying, “the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.”  The more you make, the more successful you are, the better off you are.  Like the game Monopoly, if you end up with all the money, you win.

Unlike, the union representative and President Obama, Mitt Romney is a successful,  wealthy businessman.  His focus has always been about making money and creating success.  Part of that success is being efficient with your money.  Tax laws in America have always benefited the wealthy so that they can maintain their wealth. There are many “loopholes” that have been created and this is where the wealthy and successful companies hire CPA’s and accounting firms to make sure they stay within the law while paying the lowest taxable rate possible.  Keeping their hard earned money.

In the meantime, President Obama has never run a successful business nor had to focus on a P&L, but rather looks through the microscope, much like the union representative and expects to be paid or expects the system to build in an entitlement for them.  Rather than them focusing on how to work within the system to become successful.

Ironically, we watch the Olympics and cheer the success of our athletes when they win "Gold."

Many Americans are excited about the start of the NFL season and cheer their favorite team and hope to win and eventually win the Super Bowl.  And they are fanatics about it.  Any of these teams or athletes we cheer on have to work so hard to become the best.  Stronger. Faster. Smarter.  We as Americans strive for that and cheer for that and demand it.

And yet, we don’t demand or want it in our candidates?

On paper.  This is clearly comparing “apples to oranges.”  Mitt Romney is a successful and wealthy businessman that has run businesses effectively and has certainly managed his wealth successfully.

President Obama has never run a business and has not passed one budget in his Presidency.  He has been unsuccessful at managing America’s money as well as not managing his own very well.  Whether it be a bad accountant or not paying enough attention, he has paid a higher rate, 20.5% than Romney's, 13.9% and somehow wants this to reflect something wrong or bad about Romney.  When the reality is, if you focus on “success” and successfully managing money and taking advantage of all the vehicles and loopholes that have been made for years for the wealthy, it would seem that Mitt Romney has beaten Barack Obama at managing money.

So, for those not following, here’s the “punch line.”

The media and the Obama administration are focusing on Mitt Romney’s taxes as a negative, when, in fact, if you really think about what the numbers tell you.  It should clearly point out a significant difference between these two men as candidates.

At a time when our country desperately needs financial reform, Mitt Romney’s personal wealth and money management is a clear indicator that he knows how to manage money and make it work for him.  Meanwhile, Barrack Obama and his administration have failed miserably at managing money and America’s finances.   Most Americans do not realize two very, very significant things, because the media have not made it a priority; America’s federal debt has tripled under the Obama Administration; and the interest on that debt, just the interest, is almost 100% of the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of America.

What does this mean?  Simply, if the interest on our national debt surpasses 100% of our GDP, which is the “Gross” amount of all work product, of all that we domestically create within America, we may get to the point where we will be perpetually paying only the interest on our debt and never catch up.  That’s right.  If we continue to go in the direction of growing our national debt at this rate and not passing budgets or a balanced budget amendment, America and our children will be working every day of our collective lives just to pay the interest on the debt that we owe.

I frankly don’t care if you are a Democrat or a Republican or any other political affiliation.  If we do not get someone that is financially responsible to lead our country, our legacy to our children and future generations will be debt.  They will owe money and have to work their entire lives just to pay down the debt that has been created by the financial ineptitude of this Administration.

How’s that for “motivation?”