South Carolina Republicans favor tax hike to fix deficit despite what Jim Demint and his Tea Party congressional delegation believe

Poll: Raising taxes is an option for S.C. GOP voters
By Adam Beam  The State (Columbia, S.C.)

S.C. Republican and Republican-leaning voters do not want cuts to Social Security, Medicare or defense — but they might be willing to pay more taxes to help balance the country’s budget, according to a new poll from Winthrop University.

Parris Island Marine base near Beaufort, South Carolina could be one of many federal facilities in the State that could suffer under Federal budget cuts.

Seventy-three percent of S.C. Republicans who receive Social Security and Medicare benefits say they are not willing to cut those programs in order to balance the budget.

And Republicans now working, who don’t yet receive those benefits? More than half say they still are not willing to see their future benefits cut or the retirement age raised.

More than half also say they do not want to see defense spending cut.

Those three federal programs – Social Security, Medicare and defense – make up 53 percent of the 2012 proposed federal budget with its $3.8 trillion in spending, according to the White House Office of Management and Budget. (Also, off the table, presumably, is the $434 million the federal government will pay in interest on the federal debt.)

But if those programs can’t be cut, what can be done to balance the federal budget?

One option, at least for S.C. Republicans, is to raise taxes.

Read the rest of the story from McClatchy and The State

Read about how and why Jim Demint, Tea Party and South Carolina GOP politicians put politics and the Tea Party agenda before South Carolina's interests

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South Carolina's bad management history documented by investor's journal
S.C. legislators rig pension and salary scheme to hike compensation
Jim Demint's Tea Party fueled by anger, racism and ignorance
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Don't believe what they say in the "Lame-stream" media, Jim Demint's Tea Party movement is really a lot of fun

South Carolina's junior Senator Jim Demint is proud to be called the Tea Party Senator. His PAC has been credited with electing a large number of pro-Tea Party members to Congress.

Let's take a look and meet the Tea Party folks and learn more about the movement that Demint calls his own.


Compassionate conservatives: CNN-Tea Party debate audience cheers idea that the uninsured should be left to die.


Listen to Wisconsin Tea Party rally applaud their part in helping to crash the U.S. economy.



This disabled Tea Party supporter lives off veteran's benefits and pays no taxes but complains about government spending for other poor and working folks. Its alarming to note that many Tea Party supporters often depend upon and live on Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and veteran's benefits even while Tea Party politicians like Jim Demint and Michele Bachmann want to eliminate or severely cut back those very programs.


Tea Partiers in Texas don't like hispanics in the State legislature. They're not too fond of teachers either


Nobody can say Tea Party members don't understand the issues. That's because their leaders do such a great job educating them on everything from the founding fathers to Obamacare, taxes, welfare and government spending priorities.


This Tea Party anti-communist wants to be able to choose a good doctor. We sure hope that he finds one soon.


Thankfully, there are no racists in the Tea Party!

Jim Demint's Saving Freedom reviewed by Charleston, SC paper

Senator Demint explains flip flop on "Romney care"

While a whopping 16.1% of South Carolinians go without health insurance and while the State makes cuts to Medicaid, Jim Demint continues to resist measures that would insure nearly every South Carolinian and every American against the huge costs of health care.

Senator Demint supported Mitt Romney's 2008 Presidential campaign and praised him for his health care initiative in Massachusetts saying it was a great example of private solutions to the huge public problem of providing health care to the millions who go without it.

From CNN: Demint explains early support for "Romney-care."

Demint out to kill medicare.

Demint out to kill Medicare while South Carolina ranks high for seniors living in poverty

Hear Senator Demint endorse the Ryan Plan which would eliminate Medicare in its present form to replace it with a coupon program.

With 14% of South Carolinians over 65 years of age living in poverty, the State ranks 38th in the country in that category according to the Kaiser Family founding.

This should come as no surprise, he higher rate of poverty for older South Carolinians is the logical outcome of a lifetime of high unemployment, lower wages, less unionization and fewer opportunities to accumulate savings or establish private pension or retirement plans.

Despite the high rate of elder poverty in his state, Senator Demint supports Paul Ryan's budget plan which would end Medicare as we know it and replace it with a health insurance coupon (voucher).

With nearly $1 Million from the health care industry going to his campaign committee and PAC between 2010, Demint shows loyalty to one of his key constituencies while turning his back on South Carolina's senior citizens.