Increase Spending, Taxes?

Americans seem to favor that, according to a Fox News poll released last Thursday and discussed on Fox Business Online.

[T]here is broad support for increasing taxes on the wealthiest families. Voters support tax increases on families making over $10 million annually by a 46-point margin (70% favor-24% oppose), and support a hike on those making over $1 million by 36 points (65-29%).
There is less support for a broader tax increase: 44% favor raising rates on those with income over $250,000, and a small minority, 13%, approves of an increase on all Americans.

What would have been interesting, though, and which Fox News chose not to do, would have been to break those preferences out by age group (the poll had only two categories: under/over 45), by income level (again, the poll only had two categories: under/over $50k), by income taxes actually paid in the prior year, and by welfare payments/tax credits received in the prior year.

Trends in those categories might seem too obvious to bother collecting data for, and trends indicated in the last two categories would have been skewed by willingness of respondents to divulge that information, but until data actually are collected, that “obvious” can only be speculative.

The poll itself can be seen here.

A Note about a Note

Ambassador John Bolton, at Monday’s noon press conference, had two brief notes at the top of his 8.5×11 yellow note pad, written in clear, black lettering.  One referenced Afghanistan, and the other said, “5,000 troops to Colombia.”

Naturally, the NLMSM jumped all over that second one and is wondering a) how could Bolton be so careless as to let the press see and photograph such a note, and b) whatever could it mean?

Look at how Bolton was holding his pad.  Bolton’s note was for Venezuela’s Maduro’s benefit.  What it means is that the NLMSM was trolled and made practical use of.  Bolton exposed the note knowing full well the NLMSM would jump all over it and bruit it about, ensuring that Maduro would see it.

What adult human being with two neurons to bump together into a ganglion, though (Maduro excepted), believes the Colombian government would let us stick half a division of American troops in their country with the risk we’d jump across the border and thereby involve Colombia in a war?

Jayjuz.