BACKGROUND: Several of our members and other concerned citizens recently wrote to their state representation to ask that they vote against Colorado HB 1189 through 1200, known as the "Dirty Dozen."
First is the original letter to the Senator. Next is Bacon's reply. Finally, is the reply of our member back to Bacon.
Senator Bacon evidently feels comfortable parroting the arrogance of Nancy Pelosi's "astroturf" and "fake grassroots" comments. Let's show Mr. Bacon we're for real. Make this page go viral. Tweet, blog, and email this page to everyone you know!
Original Letter From Constituent to Senator Bacon:
February 2, 2010
The Honorable Robert L. Bacon
Colorado Senate
200 East Colfax Avenue
Denver, CO 80203
Dear Senator Bacon:
I am a voter in your Senate district and I ask that you vote against HB 1189 through HB 1200, also known as the "dirty dozen." Colorado's economy is very fragile, unemployment is high and families in my neighborhood are struggling to make ends meet. Increasing taxes in this economy is the wrong approach.
These bills will drive business from Colorado and make Colorado high technology businesses and farmers and ranchers less competitive than in other states. Even worse, these bills will impose higher taxes on Colorado's already strained families.
Senator, how can we ask a taxpayer who is unemployed to pay increased taxes on soda or purchases they make on the internet? How do we look a farmer in the eye and ask them to be less competitive than their counterpart in Kansas just because Colorado government needs the money?
I ask that you vote against these bills and work in a bipartisan way to find solutions that will solve the budget shortfall. Simply increasing taxes is not smart fiscal policy in the middle of a recession.
Sincerely,
Bacon's Reply to Constituent:
I don’t usually feel obligated to reply to so-called “Astroturf” or fake grassroots communication from constituents, but I must reply to you even though yours is the very same email sent by dozens of others asking me to vote against the so called “dirty dozen” or bills alleging tax increases.
Colorado is in a budget crisis. We’ve cut 25% of our budget including $250 million in K-12 education. Without the stimulus dollars, higher education would be cut below the 2005 levels. We are on the edge of fraying the safety net of our most vulnerable populations and our transportation infrastructure is barely supported at all. We have cut local government funding by $14 million. We eliminated $3.1 million from mental health institutes. We’ve suspended the senior homestead exemption for $98 million in savings this year, and we’ve cut $15 million from Medicaid. It’s time to stop balancing the budget on the backs of those in need—our seniors, our students, and our disadvantaged children.
In these lean economic times, we all must pull together to share the burden to keep our state going despite the economic challenges. Tax exclusions and credits have not heretofore been touched. It is time to examine all avenues of enhancing revenue so that we try to maintain at least a minimum investment in our students’ education and to protect our vital services for seniors and vulnerable populations.
It should be noted that for every one million dollars cut to K-12 education support, our schools lose 30 teachers. This means we’ve already cut the equivalent of 7,500 teachers’ jobs in Colorado! In addition to harming the educational quality for our children, to eliminate salaries of those educators from our communities, as well as the taxes paid to local governments and the state, the cumulative effect would be much worse than eliminating some tax exemptions and credits.
When businesses don’t pay their fair share, future generations and you are paying more than your fair share.
Bob Bacon - Senate District 14
Constituent's reply to Bacon:
Well "Bob".
I hope that this personal letter that I am writing will help change your opinion. It will certainly take away from my real work which will take away from taxes that you try to steal from me for political idiotic past promises to your teachers unions and pork barrel causes.
Your Nancy Pelosi "Astroturf" comment is insulting and I am going to do everything that I can to make sure that you are not re-elected. You are quite able to re-use her condescending label to describe me and those of us that sprang up from grass roots in small groups and now communicate with a bit better than smoke signals. However, just because we share a letter to save time while we are being raped by you politicians for our tax dollars does not mean that it is a fake movement. You will very soon learn this the hard way and many of you condescending politicians will be unemployed. Hopefully this will not result in the domestic abuse that Harry Reid has forewarned.
If you were able to look at history you would realize that increases in taxes does nothing but stifle economic growth, small businesses, and overall small business hiring and net tax revenue. I have a feeling that you are of the progressive elite mindset that your control over the business community is what will help although history has time and time disproved this.
“Pay their fare share” – what a joke.
Sincerely,
Analysis:
Bacon's disrespectful and arrogant reply confirms what we have know all along:
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That these arrogant elitists think we are all too stupid to run our own lives.
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They they think that taxing us, spending us into oblivion, and redistributing our wealth are the only ways they can get things done.
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That they are arrogant and have complete disdain and contempt toward We The People.
Make your voices heard. Please spread this. Let's make this go viral - Tweet it, blog it, post it on every online discussion forum to which you are a member.
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