Keep on truckin'

I haven't had much time for blogging lately. In order to clear my basement of stuff so that a contractor can finish it, I've been reviewing the evidence of the excess consumerism in my life. Shoot, I haven't played my XBox since I met my wife, so it's got to go. Goodbye DVD and CD cases, but I'm keeping the liner notes for Jethro Tull's "Crest of a Knave"--it's classic. Bye-bye wife's 4S green skis. The Fort Totten Waste Transfer Station--sometimes called the DC dump--will give you a good home.

Speaking of the DC dump, I tried to dispose of certain items in an environmentally responsible way, but failed. Twice a year, the DC government has a household hazardous waste disposal and recycling day. After dropping off non-hazwaste at the dump, we drove out to the special area for the hazwaste disposal, but the street was like a parking lot for about a mile.

"The worst thing would be that, out of frustration, people put this stuff in the regular waste stream."

We did the worst thing. We made a quick u-turn and headed for the dump. Yes, I threw away my copper speaker wires in the normal waste chain. Thankfully, a salvager took it and hauled it away. That is true recycling! We didn't leave anything truly hazardous--like paint--at the dump, so don't be too hard on us.

I am glad that the Mayor is taking remedial action and is making plans for hazwaste drop-offs on the weekends. That's what I like about the Mayor. A problem is identified, potential solutions are identified, and action is taken. When Marion Barry was mayor, problems were identified, no one in government would take responsibility, and nothing would change. Mayor Williams was definitely better, but I don't think he would really care about an issue with such small monetary implications. Mayor Fenty, you are doing a great job. Now improve those schools and fix up Eastern Market and you will become the new Mayor-for-Life.

Speaking of the ill-fated hazwaste drop off, some people waited on line for so long that they almost ran out of gas. Unfortunately, that didn't happen to any of the truckers who protested high gas prices by driving around downtown Washington and Capitol Hill. Of all the protests in DC that I have seen, this was by far the lamest. Okay, gas prices are high, supply is low, demand is high, the dollar is low. So you protest to waste gallons and gallons of it and pollute myneighborhood? I'll remember this, truckers!

This is the trucker platform:

The truckers said they want Congress to issue an immediate cap on gasoline, diesel and heating oil prices. They are demanding a $2 a gallon cap on all of the fuels.

That's workable. While Congress unilaterally caps prices of a global commodity, it might was well move the West Coast closer to the East Coast to make it cheaper to drive cross-country.

Then there's the McCain-Clinton plan to eliminate the gas tax for the summer. Gas taxes pay for roads and transit. Without those taxes, either construction or maintenance stops or we borrow more money from the Chinese to pay for it. Good for Obama for calling out his opponents on this. As an Obama supporter, I would be embarrassed if he took the McCain-Clinton position. Are the Clinton supporters capable of embarrassment at this point? She went on O'Reilly. O'Reilly!

Updated:

"I find it frankly a little offensive that people who don't have to worry about filling up their gas tank or what they buy when they go to the supermarket, think that it's somehow illegitimate to provide relief for the millions and millions of Americans who are on the brink of losing their jobs, unable to keep up with their daily expenses," she said.

Later, in Jeffersonville, Indiana, Clinton said she wanted to put her tax proposal before Congress.

"I believe it would be important to get every member of Congress on record. Do they stand with the hard-pressed Americans who are trying to pay their gas bills at the gas station or do they once again stand with the oil companies?," Clinton asked.

That's our only choice? Ye Gods! This has Bill Clinton's fingerprints all over it. It is reminiscent of Bill Clinton's demagogery over Paul Tsongas's proposal for 50 cent gas tax increase over 10 years in 1992. I was embarrassed, but still drank the aid. My standards have apparently gotten higher, but the Clintons' have not.

A closer look at the NRCC scandal

I'm not talking about a run of the mill sex scandal. Or a run of the mill sex scandal. Or even a run of the mill sex scandal. I'm talking about allegations of fraud at the National Republican Campaign Committee (NRCC).

The blogosphere has circulated a story broken by The Politico that the NRCC is under FBI investigation. While it's always fun when the opposing party is under investigaiton, this could really be a long-term problem for the NRCC.

On February 6th, The Politico reported that the NRCC was under FBI investigation. On February 8th, Politico reported that NRCC's former treasurer Christopher J. Ward forged an internal audit and the NRCC notified the Federal Election Commission (FEC) that the committee may have filed inaccurate disclosure statements. These developments have not made the NRCC "In the News" website section. They also haven't made the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's "Newsroom" either. A tacit understanding?

Republican officials are concerned that illegal activity may have gone back as far as 2001.

What could this be about? I know that accounting procedures don't sound that interesting on their face.

Why would the NRCC have illegal or fraudulent accounting procedures? Not that I have any inside knowledge, but given the NRCC's role, the shady accounting could have been designed to cover up campaign finance law violations. For instance, the NRCC may have violated election contribution limits by collecting more money that is allowed from individuals or giving more than is allowed to particular campaigns. It is also possible, given the millions of dollars passing through it, that the NRCC used money as a slush fund for the private gain of insiders or other purposes.

I am by no means a tax or political law expert, but I could easily envision possible violations of Federal tax laws. As a "Section 527" political committee, the NRCC has to file IRS Form 1120-POL as its tax return. Line 7 of 1120-POL requires the NRCC to disclose "income and nonexempt function expenditures." This includes illegal expeditures as well as funds that were meant for political functions but went to other purposes.

Basically, political committees like the NRCC do not have to pay taxes on donations (called "exempt function income") because the government does not want to tax political donations, which are akin to speech under the First Amendment. However, income derived from other sources is taxable income. In addition, exempt function income that is diverted for other purposes is also taxable. According to the IRS, illegal expenditures are also taxable.

A political committee's bookkeeper would be in charge of preventing the commingling of exempt function income and other income. If Christopher Ward used NRCC donations for non-exempt purposes, that amount would be considered income. If Christopher Ward willfully covered up such shenanigans to the IRS, it would be tax fraud. If others were involved, it would a conspiracy.

Regardless of the criminal implications, the NRCC could be looking at a large tax liabilities including interest and penalties. Not to mention expected massive legal bills from Covington & Burling. In contrast to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the NRCC barely has any cash now. It's hard to imagine that the dispirited Republican faithful will be eager to pay legal bills and tax penalties.

I hope the nice NRCC building at 320 C St. SE, located just steps from the House of Representatives office buildings, goes on sale to keep the NRCC solvent. It would make nice condos.