Snowmobile driving welfare queens

This issue came up a bit in the 2004 election (mostly after the fact), and I thought it would be interesting to look at again in light of Palin's candidacy.

Tax records show an interesting fact, which is that, not always, but in general, the states which receive the most federal dollars in spending per federal tax dollars paid happen to be typically Republican states. Given what we've heard in recent years about the Bridge to Nowhere, Palin's $27 million in earmarks for a small town, and so on, I thought it would be a good time to look at the data again.

Alaska ranks 3rd in the country in dollars received per dollars paid ($1.84 received for every dollar paid in). Of the top 10 states in the rank, roughly 7-8 are typically red states. So, the very people who get themselves worked up about the growth in government are the very ones who benefit from it, and are enjoying a great transfer of wealth from blue states in order to maintain their standard of living.

http://www.taxfoundation.org/taxdata/show/266.html#fedspend_per_taxesbystate-20071009

Interesting, Alaska moved up in rank, they were 5th in 2004. So, Palin has had a first hand look at how to make a state even more dependent on others for it's well-being, at the same time that oil prices have been rising. The state run fund that distributes money to Alaska residents doesn't even count in these figures, so Alaska would be far and away numero uno if those totals were included.

Will people ever wake up to the fact that what the Republicans say and what they actually do are completely different things? Are the constant self-contradicting comments in defense of Palin going to appear to be such obvious bullshit to Americans that they'll finally just reject these blowhards once and for all?

Time will tell.