The average American home is almost 2,200 square feet. An average home in the United Kingdom is a minuscule 818 square feet, in Finland 880 square feet and in Germany under 1,200 square feet. Cramped. Americans have bigger houses and a higher material standard of living — more appliances, clothing and cars — largely because they can keep more of what they earn. The U.S. is a low-tax nation — for now.
Europeans, in comparison, have to fork over much more of their earnings to the government. They enjoy paid maternity leave, free health care, nearly free college and many other government benefits. But they settle for a lower standard of living.
Are Americans willing to settle for less, too? As Washington politicians fight over the debt ceiling and whether to limit government spending, the real issue is whether Americans are ready to pay more taxes and have less spending money in order to finance European-style government benefits.
In the U.S., two-thirds of the nation’s gross domestic product is spent on things people want for themselves — cars, computers, housing, furniture, vacations, you name it. In Europe, only 50% goes for these things. Government sucks up the other half.
Workers in Europe spend half the workday toiling to prop up their government’s socialistic programs.
Advocates for a liberal welfare state slam our materialistic lifestyles — our giant refrigerators with built-in ice machines, and in-sink garbage disposals. Bloomberg columnist Allison Schrager deplores Americans’ “overconsumption” and argues we should learn to live like Europeans. That’s her opinion.
Americans who disagree, and don’t want to trade their take-home pay for cradle-to-grave benefits, need to speak up.
Democratic politicians won’t admit there’s a trade-off. They want you to believe taxing “the rich” will pay for big government programs without taking a dollar out of your pocket.
President Joe Biden told Steamfitters Local 602 last week: “As long as I’m president, no one making less than $400,000 will have a single penny of their taxes raised. Period.”
That’s the Democrats’ script. They’re hawking magic. There aren’t enough rich people to pay for all the programs Biden Democrats are pushing.
Manhattan Institute economist Brian Riedl added up all the extra revenue that would be produced by Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez’s proposed 70% tax on income over $10 million, plus Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s proposed corporate tax rate hikes and payroll tax hikes, and Sen. Bernie Sanders’ wealth and estate tax measures. Together, these soak-the-rich proposals can’t close the current budget deficit, much less finance the Biden nanny state agenda.
Paying for that agenda would actually require draining the middle class. “If America wants to spend like Europe, it must tax like Europe — and that means large payroll and value-added taxes on the middle class,” says Riedl.
That brings us to the drama in Washington, D.C., over House Republican demands that any debt ceiling hike be linked to future limits on government spending. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer opposes any conditions, bashing Republicans for “hostage-taking.”
But Schumer’s out of touch. A staggering 86% of registered voters polled say Democrats should agree to negotiate, including 44% from Schumer’s party. Fifty-eight percent of voters say the Biden administration has been “reckless and loose” with people’s money, including 44% of Democrats, according to the same Harvard/Harris poll.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen claims raising the debt ceiling should be automatic: “This is something you can’t negotiate or bargain about.” That’s B.S. History proves that the expiration of the debt ceiling, which happens every year or two, is the biggest opportunity to rein in Washington spendaholics.
Over the last 25 years, Congress has hammered out eight laws to control spending. All eight were tied to debt ceiling hikes.
At stake in this current debt ceiling struggle is preserving what sets the United States apart from Europe.
In the United States, working people get to keep most of what they earn and decide how to spend it.
Don’t let the Washington pols treat your paycheck as if it belongs to them.
Betsy McCaughey is a former lieutenant governor of New York and chairman of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths. Follow her on Twitter @Betsy_McCaughey. To find out more about Betsy McCaughey and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website.
COPYRIGHT 2023 CREATORS.COM
I, for One, do Not want a Higher Debt Ceiling. The song & dance says ‘tax the rich’ but you can be sure if it ever happens it won’t last long. The ‘rich’ contribute heavily to democrats campaigns and they’re rewarded. I recently read an article about the percentage of their income that the rich pay. In many instances it was ‘$0$’! Why, because their highly paid lawyers can find all kinds of loopholes, and their donations are tax deductible! Imagine that!
Americans so not want what the Europeans have now, but we want politicians to keep making the debt ceiling higher, which makes it harder for the middle class people. Yes, it would be nice if the richest people would pay off taxes. Not a really big percentage, but that will help lower the debt ceiling slightly.
Met CEO from Denmark telling me how big his home is and how it is for the well to do. I examined in America the workers keep a large part of their income spending on what they chose.Our garage is almost as big as his house and is paid for while some property there takes three generations to pay for it. If you like hunger and poverty vote for Biden again.Two years from now what freedoms will we have and who can afford our present standard of living.The democratic voters are mislead by their party to blieve they are looking out for their best future.This is treason at its worse and they are killing America and winning. Need a leader now and action to protect the constitution.God help us!!!!
That’s not ‘average’ for the average persons who live in my Michigan area. We consider over 2,000 sq.Ft as large.
Please stop calling the crazy people the Democratic party, they are the Democrat party. They have absolutely nothing to do with Democracy. Changing their name was nothing more than a sales pitch.
When the elitists preaching all these changes live exactly like their “ideal lifestyle”, then I will believe it. They need to realize that not everyone drinks the “Koolaid philosophy” when they can’t do exactly as they say. I give enough money in taxes and receive very little help/discount for anything.
I’d like to see more of the variables that impact these decisions discussed all at the same time: who owns US debt? What intrest are we currently paying? What would happen if the US taxes wealth other than housing?
I don’t believe any other country has given away more monetary aid to other countries and to illegal aliens than the United States. We can help others if we kill off the fatted calf, the American dream of bettering yourself and prosperity.
The Socialist Democrats are the death of American prosperity.
I agree !
Uncle Sam kept his wallet open for 70 years and look what it got him kick in the teeth and spit in the face
Amazing this was their plan all along , the goal is to make us in to a third world country . There was no build back better accept to line their pockets , I’m so sick of these thugs that are in office were barely making it now yet they want to make sure we’re out on the street why they live high and mighty. Talk about double standards.
The politicians of the federal government and state governments for that matter are all rich!! BUT THE FEDERAL POLITICIANS have it best, they pay NO TAXES federal or state. They need to pay there fair share also!
All the Dems are out of touch
The elite will not be happy until we are all serfs and they are kings.
They already live like kings. Biden has two Beach houses. I don’t know anybody that has two of them, do you?
I had to laugh when reading about the comparisons of Americans to Europe. You notice how the Govt. wants us to live in smaller homes and have less, what about all the millionaires and billionaires in DC and Hollywood that own and live in 10,000 to 20,000 + square ft homes, have their own Jets, all their cars, multiple homes, etc, etc, etc. You know damn well THEY aren’t going to give anything up. We have worked just as hard if not harder for what we have and they need to stop comparing us with everyone else. We are not them.
And I am sick of our Govt taking our hard earned money and giving it to useless lazy people, and people not from here. They disgust me.
The so called Advocates for a Liberal Welfare state, can rot for all I care.
Unfortunately I can’t say what I’d really like to say, or they will Censor it. They seem to be good at doing that.
Don’t laugh too hard. This country always ends up following the trends that Europe embrace. More government control and higher taxes are on the way. The rich will still be comfortable and the middle class will end up in poverty with everyone else.
Will never understand how people don’t get when these politicians talk about taxing the rich and sticking it to them that they have no intention of changing the way they live but will be happy to change the way the rest of us live.
You are exactly right, Martha!
YES! EXACTLY ‼️???? ……. Thank You.
As the finite amount of money is spent more and more by the government, there will be less and less for our citizens to spend, thus a decline in the individual’s standard of living. We can’t have both huge government spending and a high standard of living.
Here they give away to illegals we need to stop spending it is easy to collect taxes but when do they stop the giveaways if we do not stop spending the debt will never come down that is what is wrong in this country they feel the money is free for them to do what ever they like.
WEanna be like Europe, go live in Europe. Even Canada ,its closer. Kyle L.
Good article although I can quibble with parts of it. For example, the “free” stuff in Europe such as healthcare is not free, of course, but is paid for by taxes. Worse, what is not mentioned is that same healthcare is also rationed to some extent so those needing more expensive care either wait long times or do without. That’s why our cancer treatment centers here in the U.S. see a lot of Canadians seeking treatment they can’t get at home. If you think that any government will put your medical welfare ahead of politics or budget restrictions you need serious mental healthcare. The socialist principles are sold to ignorant people with a promise of wealth redistribution, the giving of benefits that are claimed to be “free” but are really at someone else’s expense. It doesn’t work in actual practice, never has, and never will. It’s snake-oil.
I lived in Sweden. The healthcare there is atrocious.
Under DIMMs, we are becoming a third-world nation. They give OUR tax money to people who hate us, provide UNEQUAL treatment to citizens, strip our defenses by sending OUR arms to other nations, and promote SLOTH and perversion.
I agree, Philip. So wrong!
My solution is simple. If you don’t pay taxes, you can’t vote.
When you study the histories of multiple nations there is a pattern. George Bush Sr. in his presidential acceptance speech said these exact words: “We must usher in the New World Order”. I watched that speech. Tho’ I didn’t fully understand the context at the time it stayed embedded in my memory. For those who keep up with and understand God’s word this in itself is very well a precursor to the anti-Christ and one world rule. It’s going to get uglier and more intense as the next few years (?) continue.
So many nations have been disarmed, enslaved to poverty and hunger that were once fairly prosperous. Abortion is one method of population control, over 60 MILLION budding citizens destroyed in the name of “choice”, covid is now the real and present danger. There are ‘scientists’ working on more destructive covid mutations, alleged “vaccines” etc.
As far back as the mid 60’s I was living in Boulder, Colorado, Lamb was the governor. He made a statement on TV one evening that is still burned in my brain: “The elderly have a duty to die”. Remember Cuomo during covid putting covid positive people in nursing homes…about 15,000 died!
Supposedly it’s because of “money”…yet look at what the democrats …and rinos…have done to this country…over $31 TRILLION in debt. Inflation is ramping up, preventing of our own oil supplies from being tapped…and they are substantial. Inflation off the charts…yeah, Carter and Obama did the same thing…perhaps practicing for the eventual downfall of our monetary system??
Almost daily there is more “news” of the mad “scientists” mutating covid and inventing more “vaccines”. Children are being “inoculated” and have never needed it…Fauci is now the richest “man” in DC…and the poisons keep on being made.
The almost maniacal push to disarm this nation is going to ramp up even more than it has. As one said so long ago: “Dictators, tyrants and absolute rulers are sensitive to arms in the hands of the people.” Tyrants and dictators can’t abide a citizenry that can defend itself. Don’t believe the concentrated attacks on morality, decency, our justice system and truth are random. The Christian churches who still teach God’s Word are already under attack and it will get worse.
We who adhere to the Constitution, Bill of RIGHTS, our Declaration of Independence and our once proud history are in for a wild ride in the near future. It’s going to get even crazier and more dangerous. Those involved in this “new world order” are monsters. They will stop at nothing to establish their goals. To them We The People are nothing but an inconvenience to be gotten rid of, no more than cannon fodder.
One thing: what really grabbed my attention 30 years ago was the deliberate slaughter of almost 86 American men, women and CHILDREN at Waco, Texas during the Clinton regime. Carefully omitted from the “news” but reported in conservative sources and the NRA, was that supposedly they had “thousands of guns and millions of rounds of ammo.” After 51 days of hell and torture, terrorizing, at one point a jeep playing the sounds of rabbits being skinned alive screaming, tanks crushing walls, helo’s shooting into the top of the compound and ultimately inserting CS gas, banned by the Geneva convention as to cruel for warfare, the compound was burned to the ground. Not a whisper about guns after the carnage. The few survivors were put through more hell after the smoke cleared.
Don’t forget one detail that should set every full blooded American’s teeth on edge: THE UNITED STATES MILITARY, in blatant violation of our Constitution, was used on American citizens!!
We the people should NEVER EVER forget this! To this day when I think of this I can picture tanks crushing the walls of the building where women and children were hiding in the basement. Never, ever forget this was done by a SITTING PRESIDENT!
OK Denise, let’s not distort the facts to fit your narrative. Attempting to stir up folks against the US Military and tarnish those who are now serving or have served. You are either miss-informed, or intentionally miss-leading. Was there US military involved? Yes, there was. In any case, intentionally being inflammatory by all the “bold” print, which in case you don’t know, is considered shouting when in print.
15 US Army soldiers, who btw, were there under orders from their military superiors, who were under orders from their civilian superiors. And in all likely hood, they were there only because of the proximity to Fort Hood. The only reason the military was involved, was a supposed drug lab connection, (purported by the ATF), that allowed a legal military presence.
But let’s get the full count of every organization involved.
FBI committed approximately 668 personnel to the standoff at Waco, with an average of approximately 217 agents and 41 support personnel present, on any given day.
ATF 136
U.S. Customs 6
Waco Police Department 18
McLennan County Sheriff’s office 17
Texas Rangers (Texas Department of Public Safety) 31
DPS Patrol (Texas Department of Public Safety) 131
U.S. Army 15 (The only actual military involved)
Texas National Guard 13 (I know Denise, to you these are military. In fact, back then, they were considered “week-end” warriors by those of us that served on full active duty. The National Guard mission of course, has changed since 9-11
Furthermore, it wasn’t quite the “no holds blood bath” you seem to insinuate. Was it bad, of course. Could the FBI have handled it better?, Absolutely! But that was on Janet Reno, if memory serves. However, maybe, had the hold outs been a bit more cooperative with law enforcement, those unfortunate 76, deaths wouldn’t have happened. (76, not 86 as you stated). FACTS MATTER. But it’s difficult to really change history in that respect.
“Although, as will be discussed later in this report, there is some question whether or not there were ever any true negotiations with actual “give and take” on each side, a significant number of individuals did exit the compound.
(3) These can be summarized as follows: Date / Departed February 28 / 4 children March 1 / 10 children; March 2 4 children, 2 adults;
March 3 / 1 child March; 4 / 1 child; March 5 / 1 child; March 12 / 2 adults;
March 19 / 2 adults; March 21 / 7 adults; March 23 / 1 adult
TOTALS: 21 Children and 14 Adults”
Additionally, 9 adults left the compound during the fire on April 19. Therefore, 44 people (21 children and 23 adults) left the compound at one time or another during the standoff.
**The above information taken from archival records of the Department of Justice, so there may be some reasonable concern as to the complete accuracy of that information.
Oh, I forgot Denise, that sitting President, was of course, William & Hillary Clinton! LOL
I am sure that worst is yet to come