The DNC is avoiding paying taxes on gas since they are using the city’s pump:
The committee hosting the Democratic National Convention has used the city’s gas pumps to fill up and apparently avoided paying state and federal fuel taxes.
The practice, which began four months ago, may have ended hours after its disclosure. An aide to Mayor John Hickenlooper released a statement Tuesday evening saying that Denver 2008 Host Committee members would pay market prices for fuel and would also be liable for all applicable taxes.
[...]
“There’s something there that just doesn’t seem right to me because, in a sense, you’re saying then that the officials who pass the laws are not willing to live by them,” said Councilwoman Jeanne Faatz.
It wouldn’t be the first time that happened and I’m sure it won’t be the last. Laws are for the peasants not the ruling class.
Of course they aren’t trying to avoid paying taxes by using the city pumps, they were using them for safety reasons:
“We know the gas is not tainted,” he said. “We use it as a safety and security measure.”
Kind of insulting to the gas station owners in Denver, don’t you think? Is this a known problem with the gas in Denver?
The citizens of Denver might want to check for anymore freebies they’re subsidizing for the Democrat convention. This is probably the tip of the iceberg.
posted July 23, 2008 at 12:42 pm
If this were the biggest subsidy that the taxpayer had to worry about, we’d have a balanced budget. We have more subsidies and tax breaks and loopholes than you could shake a stick at. Not that shaking a stick at them would do any good.
We still have a mohair subsidy in place from WW1, for goodness sakes. We subsidize football, baseball, basketball stadiums; we subsidize oil, like they need help, we subsidize McDonald’s and Gallo wine, for all love. It sometimes looks like the minority is companies and businesses that are NOT subsidized.
This is a drop in the gas tank, so to speak.
posted July 23, 2008 at 2:17 pm
It’s not the size of the subsidy that matters. It’s the way it exposes the Democrat’s priorities.
posted July 23, 2008 at 3:48 pm
The RNC gets the same deal; its a standard freebie that politicians throw each other constantly like the uber rich getting products for free to show off so others want to buy them. They certainly don’t need the free goodies, but when you reach a certain status, that is what you start to get offered.
Certainly this is something that politicians ought to avoid, but to pin it all on Democrats isn’t exactly accurate. Still I’m glad to see it get press – maybe the Democratic party can show leadership for once in it’s existence and lead the way by declining these kind of benefits.
posted July 23, 2008 at 4:06 pm
“It wouldn’t be the first time that happened and I’m sure it won’t be the last. Laws are for the peasants not the ruling class.”
seems like the RNC does this too. So both parties are above the law — but we already knew that.
posted July 23, 2008 at 8:01 pm
“Kind of insulting to the gas station owners in Denver, don’t you think? Is this a known problem with the gas in Denver?”
it should be insulting. and yes, it is a problem, not just in denver, but all around. there was a report on the local news maybe a year or two ago that reported on the quality of the gasoline from random stations and most were good, but plenty had traces of water mixed in. i got water in my fuel lines after filling up from a texaco station three years ago.
ct is right, politicians need to avoid this kind of favoritism, but it’s not fair to blame just dems for it. thanks for your balanced view on this, christopher.
by the way, michele, nice take on the malkin title of “Gas tax for thee, but not for the DNC.” Just love those “coincidences” (http://michellemalkin.com/2008/07/23/gas-tax-for-thee-but-not-for-the-dnc/)
“The citizens of Denver might want to check for anymore freebies they’re subsidizing for the Democrat convention.”
not any different than how cities here and the state of colorado give tax breaks and subsidies to wal*mart to build all over. and it’s not just wal*mart, either. but those don’t earn your ire in the same way, do they?
posted July 23, 2008 at 11:17 pm
“by the way, michele, nice take on the malkin title of “Gas tax for thee, but not for the DNC.” Just love those “coincidences” (http://michellemalkin.com/2008/07/23/gas-tax-for-thee-but-not-for-the-dnc/)”
She’s letting Malkin do her thinking for her, so it’s not surprising that she would simply cut and paste. Not surprising though. There are a lot of conservative blogs run by lazy bloggers these days.
I guess it’s because original thought is so sparse in the conservative sphere these days. They miss Buckley more than they know.
posted July 23, 2008 at 11:32 pm
Michelle, cut and paste? Michelle, plagiarize? For shame! Tell us it isn’t so….
posted July 24, 2008 at 2:47 am
no, no, no. she changed a few words so it’s not “plagiarizing” per se.
this isn’t an echo chamber blog, no way.
you’re welcome, michele.
posted July 24, 2008 at 3:23 pm
Eh, there’s only so many ways you can say a story and the facts are pretty straight forward here. Its usually best not to presume malice or deliberate wrongdoing without rational basis or evidence.