GOP criticizes McCaskill for tax hypocrisy

The Missouri Republican Party jumped all over Sen. Claire McCaskill today, alleging hypocrisy in the senator's criticism of the rich (referred to as job-creators by the GOP) for shirking their duty to pay taxes. From the news release:

Just weeks after Claire McCaskill became embroiled in a major scandal surrounding her failure to pay $320,000 in property taxes on her private plane, she is now attacking job-creators for not paying enough in federal taxes. According to KRCG, McCaskill assured members of the far-left Grass Roots Organizing (GRO) “that she wants to stop America’s largest corporations from paying zero taxes thanks to foreign tax havens and other loopholes.”


McCaskill’s attack is especially hypocritical considering that McCaskill herself has benefited from many of the same provisions she is now attacking. For example:

McCaskill’s wealthy husband, Joe Shepard, has a history of avoiding federal income taxes. Joe Shepard has created an intentionally-confusing network of more than 280 LPs, LLCs, and shell companies to shield his assets. In the past, this has allowed him to avoid taxes. According to the Kansas City Star (October 18, 2006), “[Shepard’s] 1995 returns, released in a divorce case… show he paid no federal income taxes that year.” Unfortunately, McCaskill has refused to release her family’s tax returns—hiding more recent data from public disclosure. But if the past is any indication, it is possible that McCaskill and her husband have been avoiding federal income taxes for years.

McCaskill has come under fire for maintaining her own foreign tax haven by sheltering business assets in a Bermuda company. In the past, McCaskill was criticized for her interest in a Bermuda-based reinsurance company. At the time, the ethics watchdog group Citizens for Tax Justice declared: “It’s all about avoiding taxes” (Kansas City Star, October 18, 2006). Following the criticism, McCaskill closed the tax shelter.

McCaskill’s private plane was registered in tax-friendly Delaware—an obvious and deliberate attempt to avoid taxation. McCaskill’s multi-million dollar Pilatus plane was registered in Delaware and owned by a Delaware-based corporation called Timesaver, LLC. Delaware is a well-known on-shore tax haven for the wealthy—and many people register their aircraft there for the tax benefits.

Given McCaskill’s history of tax problems and avoidance, she should think twice before hypocritically attacking others for dodging taxes.

Maverick freshman Republicans, including Billy Long, hit up special interests for campaign cash

In an article published this morning, the Washington Post notes that freshman Republicans, who rode into office on white chargers claiming that government is bad and it would not be business as usual under their watch, are raking in campaign cash from special interest PACS:

Many of the Republican freshmen in the House won election vowing to shake up Washington, so it’s a little surprising that many of them seem to be playing an old Washington game: raising much of their campaign money from corporate political action committees.

More than 50 members of the class of 87 GOP freshmen took in more than $50,000 from PACs during the first quarter of 2011, according to new campaign disclosure reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. Eighteen of the lawmakers took in more than $100,000.

 Among the Republican freshman who fought business as usual all the way to Washington and then settled into that same familiar routine is Seventh District Congressman Billy Long.

As noted in the April 12 Turner Report:

It did not take Long much time to get acclimated to the pace of Washington, according to his quarterly report, filed Tuesday with the Federal Election Commission.

Long received $78,517 during the last three months, with more than $40,000 of it that coming from either special interest PACS or lobbyists.

Among the contributions:

$1,000- Action Committee for Rural Electrification
$1,000- Allied Pilots Association
$1,000- Ameren Federal PAC
$1,000- American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry
$1,000- American Airlines PAC
$1,000- American Bus Association PAC
$1,000- American Hospital Association PAC
$5,000- Anheuser-Busch PAC
$1,000- Arch Coal PAC
$3,000- Boeing Company PAC
$500- CoalPAC
$1,000- Dairy Farmers of America PAC
$2,000- Emerson Electric
$2,000- FedEx PAC
$2.000- Free and Strong America PAC
$2,000- Honeywell International PAC
$500- MinePAC
$1,000- National Air Traffic Controllers PAC
$2,000- National Association of Convenience Stores PAC
$1.000- National Association of Realtors PAC
$1,000- National Rural Letter Carriers PAC
$1,000- Outdoor Advertising Association of America
$2,000- PriceWaterhouseCoopers PAC
$2,000- Raytheon Company PAC
$2,000- Southwest Airlines Pilots Association
$1,000- United Technologies Corporation PAC

 Long's reliance on those special interests continues as noted in the April 17 Turner Report:

Four Washington lobbyists are serving as hosts for a May 31 dinner honoring the freshman legislator at Hill Country Barbecue in our nation's capital.

The group includes Gregg Hartley, former chief of staff to Roy Blunt, who represents AT&T, as well as numerous other clients, Tim McGivern, also an AT&T lobbyist, National Rifle Association lobbyist Liz Williams, and Jeffrey Hogg, who represents Reynolds American.

If you want to be one of those honoring Billy Long, be prepared to pay dearly for the privilege. The event has a "suggested contribution" of $1,000 per PAC or $500 per individual.

The Washington  fundraiser will be the ninth for Billy Long since he took office in January. Six of those, including one on March 30, were held at the exclusive Capitol Hill Club. As noted in the April 13 Turner Report, Long spent $1,133 from his campaign account to the club for initiation and dues to the club.

Fiscal conservative Billy Long uses campaign cash to pay for swank D. C. hotel

A disclosure report filed last week with the Federal Election Commission shows Seventh District Congressman Billy Long used campaign cash to pay for several weeks of lodging at a swank Washington D. C. hotel.

According to the documents, Long paid $3,692.58 on Jan. 10 and $2,147.81 on Jan. 31 for lodging at the W Hotel, which describes itself in the following fashion on its website:

"W puts the capital in Washington, D. C., where a policy of pleasure is always executed with legislative luxury."

Revel in the full-serve Bliss Spa and abide by the first 'ahh'mendment of ooh- do we spy a contented sigh."

One of visitors' favorite amenities at  the W is the luxurious W Living Room "where you can open your mind and feel alive while indulging in cocktail caucusing>'

And, of course, there is the Wine Bar which offers "a robust selection of eclectic and sophisticated wines from around the world.

There's even the J & G Steakhouse right on the premises.

The W Hotel was not the only luxury item campaign contributors paid for, according to the FEC report. As noted in the April 13 Turner Report, Long spent $1,333 for "initiation and dues" for the exclusive Capitol Hill Club:

Blunt: We need to get serious about cutting spending

Link provided to BIlly Long Joplin Tea Party speech

Eli Yokley at PoliticMo has posted an audio recording of Seventh District Congressman Billy Long's speech at Saturday's Tea Party rally in Joplin.

You can enjoy as those attend the rally applaud as Long talks about his vote to shut down the government.

Link provided to Gannett quarterly conference call transcript

You won't find any hard-hitting questions from business reporters about the bonuses offered to company executives, including CEO Craig Dubow, at a time when many are losing their jobs and all are having to take unpaid furloughs, but you can read the transcript of Gannett's quarterly conference call at this link.

C. L. Tanner's thoughts on teacher evaluations

In this op-ed post, former East Newton teacher Curtis "C. L." Tanner addresses the issue of teacher evaluations:

I've read several articles of late concerning teachers and their pay and methods of how to determine what teachers are paid. Student performance on standardized test seem to always come to the top as the gauge to determine what teachers should be paid. I'm going to address something that has bothered me for some time about evaluating teachers.


In Missouri there are set evaluation procedures building principals use during direct observation of the teacher actually teaching students. This isn't what bothers me. I don't know if school districts are still doing this, but at one time districts would have "Star Teachers" come in to observe teachers doing their jobs and give ideas as to how the teacher might do their jobs better. This is what I'm going to address.

The first time we had a "Star Teacher" come to Granby she ask if she might use one of my tables to do her paper work during my planning time. I had no problem with this and while she was there I had an opportunity to visit with her and learned that her mother-in-law and father-in-law lived in Granby and were people that I knew. During our conversation I ask her about being a Star Teacher and how long she had been a classroom teacher, and her answer has bothered me ever since. It seems she had NOT taught, but had been a kindergarten teacher's helper. Did you get that? A person watching teachers teach and telling them how to do it better, but hadn't done this job herself. Then how did she get to be a "Star Teacher"? She answered an ad, took a test and Sh-zammm she is a "Star Teacher". She told me where to check for openings.

Now we have politicians with pie in the sky ideas wanting to determine what pay a teacher should receive. Just think if Mr. Jones' 3rd grade class did poorly on these test last year and then MS Smith gets them in 4th grade, do you suppose she will be able to get up to where they should be for this year's test? Not likely. Now two teachers are going to get low pay and most likely it is either of their faults, but test scores are test scores.

Cunningham: Why give money to the schools? They're terrible!

Sen. Jane Cunningham, friend of the working child, continued her war against public education today, recording one of only six Senate votes against a measure that provided $189 million in federal surplus money to our schools.

Mrs. Cunningham indicated that the schools did not deserve the money because they are doing such a poor job of educating Missouri's children.

The long-time public school enemy said the schools should receive no money unless it was accompanied by the passage of her bill eliminating teacher tenure, tying teacher pay to standardized test scores and the institution of vouchers for private schools, according to an MNEA bulletin.

She was joined in her vote by senators Brian Nieves, R-St. Louis County, Jim Lembke, R-St. Louis, Jason Crowell, R-Cape Girardeau, Chuck Purgason, R-Caulfield, and Will Kraus, R-Lee's Summit.

The senators representing this corner of the state, Ron Richard, R-Joplin, Jack Goodman, R-Mount Vernon; and Mike Parson, R-Bolivar all voted for the bill.

The smackdown of those spoiled teachers

In my latest Huffington Post blog, I address the anti-teacher bill being pushed through by friend of the working child Sen. Jane Cunningham, R-Chesterfield,  The bill calls for the elimination of teacher tenure, does not allow for years of experience or added education to be considered in teacher salary schedules, and divides teachers in all school districts into four pay tiers, based primarily on standardized test scores. The following passage is from the blog:

In the world of Jane Cunningham, experience does not matter. Advanced degrees and the debt that went into earning them are meaningless. In Mrs. Cunningham's world, if you remove all originality and empathy from your teaching and spend the lion's share of your time teaching test-taking tips, you have a 25 percent chance of becoming a highly-paid teacher.

With public education turning into a nightmarish Dickensian and American Legislative Exchange Council vision, one question remains unanswered:

Why in the world would anyone want to become a classroom teacher?

Joplin Tea Party crowd loves Billy, Bozo

In this YouTube audio of Seventh District Congressman Billy Long, in the space of one minute and 46 seconds, he tells how a bozo keeps him in line and repeats his auctioning of the nation's debt. Naturally, it is heartily approved by those who attended the rally: