Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
If not for the principle against taxing Christmas, what about the optics of such a move? From Heritage:
President Obama’s Agriculture Department today announced that it will impose a new 15-cent charge on all fresh Christmas trees—the Christmas Tree Tax—to support a new Federal program to improve the image and marketing of Christmas trees.
In the Federal Register of November 8, 2011, Acting Administrator of Agricultural Marketing David R. Shipman announced that the Secretary of Agriculture will appoint a Christmas Tree Promotion Board. The purpose of the Board is to run a “program of promotion, research, evaluation, and information designed to strengthen the Christmas tree industry’s position in the marketplace; maintain and expend existing markets for Christmas trees; and to carry out programs, plans, and projects designed to provide maximum benefits to the Christmas tree industry” (7 CFR 1214.46(n)). And the program of “information” is to include efforts to “enhance the image of Christmas trees and the Christmas tree industry in the United States” (7 CFR 1214.10).
Unbelievable.
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Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
Does it count if I consider it a "Holiday Tree?"
Dec '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
Next he'll be rationing the coal for our fires, the Scrooge.
Nov '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
If the government really finds it necessary to launch a program to improve the image of holiday icons, fruitcake could use some help.
Oct '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
Oh my, whats next ? Those that produce wealth are to get coal in their stockings, Yes?
Oct '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
How does one improve the image of an inedible thing that qualifies as a doorstop ?
May '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
Well, at least there's no 1 cent per-Chanukah candle tax. That would be, like 2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9=44 cents!
Sep '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
I fear a coming mirthquake.
May '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
Dear Secretary of Agriculture,
Just let Christmas trees be Christmas trees and not "holiday trees". That will do wonders for their "image".
Does it really take a tax to figure this out?
Jan '11
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
Two words: Shakedown!~
Mar '11
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
"Unbelievable"
Not from this President.
May '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
I know where I want to stick my Christmas tree.
Aug '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
I came here to write a post about this, but Mollie beat me to it.
This may be one of the dumbest things I've ever heard. I actually checked the page twice to make sure it wasn't a parody. So there's going to be a 'Christmas Tree Promotion Board', which is tasked with improving the Christmas tree market. And to pay for this, they're going to... tax Christmas trees.
Not only that, but the tax is so small that I'm willing to bet that the administration costs will be much larger than the tax itself, meaning the cost of trees will go up for no good reason.
And since when did Christmas Trees need a government-funded image makeover? The only threat I've seen to Christmas trees has come from the government itself in the form of regulations on tree farms and politically-correct attempts to remove 'Christmas' from their name.
Sometimes you just can't make this stuff up.
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
Just fifteen cents per Christmas tree--but you know what? I can hardly tell you how angry this makes me. I'm not even sure why, but I'm just furious.
Will any of the GOP candidates have the wit to seize on this?
May '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
For a moment, forget that Christmas trees are involved at all. The executive branch is levying a tax without Congressional approval. Yes, there are precedents; that's the problem.
This is one of the reasons I don't listen to Law Talk. The Constitution and law in this country have taken a backseat to a game of thrones. Politicians, judges, bureaucrats and countless other power-hungry cretins do whatever they can get away with. The constraints of law and good judgement weaken every year.
Oct '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
"This administration shall be of the bureaucrats, by the bureaucrats and for the bureaucrats".
Jul '11
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
The federal government has determined that since coal is not considered environmentally friendly and is also a finite resource it is no longer to be used as a stocking stuffer. In the future you are to use a “toxic asset” of your choice since these have no value or real world existence they can be considered environmentally friendly and given the current financial climate we now have an unlimited quantity of them.
Mar '11
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
So, the lights on that Christmas tree...they're going to be the planet-saving florescent curly bulbs, and not those global-warming, environment destroying incandescent bulbs, right?
May '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
Peter: my money is on Newt. He'll mention it at the debate tonight.
May '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
I can't imagine that the Left will too enamored of this proposal either. Through their spectrum a "Federal program to improve the image and marketing of Christmas trees" can only be viewed as the promotion of an official religion. Nonsense of course, since Christmas has long since stopped being a religious holiday.
In another vein, have things gotten so bad that the assistance of the Federal Government is required in order to "improve the image and marketing of Christmas trees"?? Did I miss a recent MSM poll that showed a plurality of Americans having a negative image of the Christmas Tree? Maybe its internal polling at the White House....
And if the White House really wants to improve the image of the Christmas Tree, I suggest they forego hanging any ornaments that include communist leaders again this year....
Edited on November 9, 2011 at 12:49pmSep '10
Re: Scrooged: Obama Taxes Christmas
I've had to wait minutes to eek out a response on this, my mind has been reeling so. I thought that there were limits to government meddling, profligacy, and yes even stupidity. I am now sure these "qualities" are limitless.