Why do Red States Vote Republican While Blue States Pay the Bills?

[dreamdancer 0]

interesting...

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Every year more states receive more in federal spending than they pay in taxes to the federal government. Since the early 1980s, when data on tax burdens per state are first available, the states that receive more in federal spending than taxes paid have been increasingly Republican in presidential elections. This pattern persisted in the 2008 presidential election. The impact of federal spending on a state’s Electoral Vote is increasing over the period 1984 to 2008 and remains statistically significant as a predictor of the vote when controlling for differences in ideology and opinions on issues across state populations and when controlling for per capita or median state income.

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1451268

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
blue skies from thai sky adventures
good solid response-provoking keyboarding

[mnealtx 0]

"Hoist by their own petard"

To quote the author of our most recent dollar-for-dollar comparison, former Tax Foundation economist Curtis Dubay:

"The Tax Foundation’s annual federal tax burden and expenditure study clarifies the geographical patterns of income redistribution that federal tax and spending policies cause each year. The results of the study have been controversial for years because they show that the nation is not only redistributing income from the prosperous to the poor, but from the middle-income residents of high-cost states to the middle-income residents of low-cost states.

"Thanks to a steeply progressive federal income tax, states with higher incomes pay vastly higher federal taxes, payments that are unlikely ever to be matched by federal spending directed to those states. Ironically, most of these high-paying states are the so-called blue states that have generally elected politicians who support a more steeply progressive tax system even though their own constituents bear a greater share of the burden as the code gets more progressive."

Mike
I love you, Shannon and Jim.
POPS 9708 , SCR 14706

[billvon 3,120]

Sounds like the people willing to support the US via taxes pay more taxes, and the people not willing to support the US pay less. Sounds fair.

[champu 1]

Voting trends are tied to population density. Spending is tied to geographic area which is inversely related to population density. Tax receipts are tied to income which is tied to cost of living which is, again, tied to population density.

Republican politicians will push for things like roads, rural communication access subsidies, military bases (of which there are a lot out in the middle of nowhere) and other stuff that benefits low population densities. Democratic politicians will push for social programs that try to benefit individuals directly which increases spending to higher density areas. Everyone votes selfishly in a geographic sense, I don't think this is news.

[Lucky... 0]

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Sounds like the people willing to support the US via taxes pay more taxes, and the people not willing to support the US pay less. Sounds fair.

But the least fiscally responsible party spends more and taxes less. Just because Repubs tax less doesn't mean they spend less, they are just stupid with the credit card.

[rhaig 0]

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Sounds like the people willing to support the US via taxes pay more taxes, and the people not willing to support the US pay less. Sounds fair.

But the least fiscally responsible party spends more and taxes less. Just because Repubs tax less doesn't mean they spend less, they are just stupid with the credit card.

firstly, please don't re-re-post the same tired old spending graph.

Secondly, I think almost all currently seated politicians need a budget lesson.

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Rob