Givers and Takers or WHAT A BUNCH OF DAMN HYPOCRITS!

Every few years i see this study telling where our tax dollars go. usually its in Time or Newsweek with this big map showing what each state pays in Federal Taxes and what the state yields in federal dollars spent there in return. We in Mississippi usually get $1.72 for ever dollar spent, which makes the 'get the guvmint outta our bidness' folks seem a little disingenuous (much like VP Cheney's claim that the Gov't. didn't have anything to do with his fortunes...um, so Haliburton HATES Gov't. contracts?).

Anyway this article sheds even more light on the nature of the "small government republican states" and the "big government democrat leaning states". basically, we dems subsidize the GOP'ers sense of independance with our federal dollars and we don't even get a thank you! see the giver vs. the taker states:

78 percent of Mr. Bush's electoral votes came from Taker states.

76 percent of Mr. Gore's electoral votes came from Giver states.

Of the 33 Taker states, Mr. Bush carried 25.

Of the 16 Giver states, Mr. Gore carried 12.

Republicans seem to have become the new welfare party — their constituents live off tax dollars paid by people who vote Democratic. Of course, not all federal spending is wasteful. But Republicans are having their pork and eating it too. Voters in red states like Idaho, Montana and Wyoming are some of the country's fiercest critics of government, yet they're also among the biggest recipients of federal largess. Meanwhile, Democratic voters in the coastal blue states — the ones who are often portrayed as shiftless moochers — are left to carry the load.


Question: how do you win over voters in states that are willing to tell themselves they don't need the government, but grab government dollars any way they can?

Answer: You vote for GOP'ers that rail against liberal "tax-and-spend" democrats yet somehow manage to bring in less revenue and spend more tax dollars (see Bush 1 & 2).

How do you win if you are a Democrat?

...lots of work my friend. lots of work.