Fox News and right wing media have claimed that Obama is taxing Christmas trees, but according to the National Christmas Tree Association there is no tax, just an industry regulated fee used for marketing and research.
Here is Gretchen Carlson on Fox and Friends spreading the false Obama Christmas Tree Tax meme:
Carlson claimed that Obama was adding a Christmas tree tax for the holidays, and that the government was grinching fifteen cents out of your pocket on the sale of each tree.
This may come as a surprise, but none of Carlson’s claims are true. Media Matters did some digging and found that the Christmas tree industry is starting their own Checkoff program.
Here is how Christmas Trees Magazine described the industry supported program,
Under the authority of the Commodity Promotion, Research, and Information Act of 1995 the USDA oversees the formation of Checkoff organizations. The purpose of establishing a Checkoff is to promote the agricultural commodity with the intent of expanding markets and increasing demand. Checkoff programs also provide funding for research.
Examples of other agricultural commodity Checkoffs include the egg, beef, pork, mushroom, milk, and honey, etc. industries. We’re all familiar with the Dairy industry’s ad campaigns; “Milk Does a Body Good” and “Got Milk.” “Pork: the Other White Meat,” “Beef: It’s What’s for Dinner” and “The Incredible Edible Egg” are recognizable slogans developed and funded by Checkoff programs. These four ‘big guns’ collect between $45 and $91.2 million in assessments annually.
Funding for promotions and research comes from within each industry. Fees could be assessed for example, in the Christmas tree industry, on a percentage of the selling price, per cut tree or per seedling basis. The amount of the assessment, who would participate, how the fees would be collected and how utilized, would be determined by the industry taskforce with the input of growers and attendees at the National Convention. Fresh imports (mainly from Canada) would be assessed at a comparable rate.
The live tree industry is advocating for this fee so that they can compete against imported cheap artificial trees, “Keeping the Real Tree industry viable in the face of imported fake trees is the challenge. A National marketing program with increased funding available for industry research is promising. If not through a Checkoff Program, then how?”
The industry is starting their own fund for research and marketing. The only role the government has is one of oversight. The fifteen cent fee goes to the private sector, not the government. Uncle Sam doesn’t see a dime. By smearing this fee, the right is attacking one of the traditional symbols of the holiday that they claim the left is out to destroy. Right wing media is willing to hurt one of their beloved private sector (holiday) job creators in order to attack Obama.
The right is apparently opposed to a private sector industry being allowed to set their own fees and prices so that they may compete with foreign imports. What is most interesting about this is that discussions about the Christmas tree checkoff program began in February 2008 during the presidency of George W. Bush.
In summary, Obama’s Christmas tree tax is not really a tax at all. The government doesn’t get any revenue from it. It is a private sector program like the “Got Milk?” campaign, which has its roots in the time period when Republican George W. Bush was president.
In pushing this false meme, right wing media may actually discourage Americans from buying live Christmas trees this year.
Merry Christmas, GOP. You blockheads!!
Image: One Page Wonder
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Great column.
Well, what can you expect from WretchinGretchin’ and her Fewlish Fiends on Faux?
They ALWAYS use some outrageous lie to begin their annual War On Christmas meme that is BLATANTLY FAKE.
The lengths the Teapublicans go to, to make Obama appear to be the bogey man, when they are the ones we should be afraid of, really afraid of, they are our own home-grown terrorists from within. And the kicker here is so many claim to be Christian. However when did Christ say it was okay to lie, cheat and steal, and spread malicious gossip with the intent to do harm? I thought you were supposed to treat others, the way you would like to be treated!
Outstanding!
Yeah…and of course, that “Xmas Tree Tax” nonsense is front page on that piece of shit Drudge, along with a picture of their “evil muslin socialist” president.
Dammit, it’s because he’s a Mooslim, a Commie, not white enough, not black enough, engaging in “class warfare”; and “not one of us”.
So Gretchen is the REAL GRENCH?
Just once, when handed a piece of obvious garbage to read, could someone, anyone at Fox bother to ask,
“Is this true?” Just once?
No, they can’t. They get demoted to mail clerk if they do that. If you try to post such a question, they take it down.
What’s the difference between Fox News and Pravda?
One spewed deceit-filled propaganda aimed at misleading the people, and was the mouthpiece for an iron-fisted oligarchy that demanded ideological purity, and punished those who strayed from their worldview.
The other one was written in Cyrillic.
I like it. May I quote it?
Sure. And thank you.
By the way, when Saddam Hussain was in power, Iraqi Christians bought Christmas trees with ease and impunity, and a Christian was his foreign minister. Just try any of that now… Thanx to the “good Christians”, Bush and Cheney.
But it is a tax: it is imposed by the Federal government, albeit at the behest of (some) Christmas tree producers, so as to channel money into the hands of a tiny group of executives and advertisers. Big tree farms and importers will not be impacted; small-scale producers however might well see some negative impact (though fifteen cents isn’t, of course, a huge amount). But at any rate this tax is basically doing the work of consumerist capitalism through government channels. Which is neither new nor surprising; it’s just business as usual. The bizarre thing about it is the outrage by Republicans- who should be applauding cartelized capitalism- and the defense by Democrats, whom one would think would be at least a little suspicious of such blatant uses of the state for capitalist ends. But of course, partisan interests over-ride other considerations: Republicans lambast the President for doing quite rightist things, and Democrats rush to his defense in order to lambast Republicans.
http://www.wisconsinfarmreport.com/News-1276-WI-Christmas-Tree-Growers-Check-Off-Focused.html from December 2010! In case you don’t know, Obama was president!
According to your link, legislation was started for this three to four years before it was written in 2010…….making bush the pres. And now you know!
This is a government-enforced cartelization arrangement intended to prevent free-riders from benefiting from advertising without contributing/funding the advertising.
I am trying to figure out what their objective is. By linking Obama with a christmas tree tax, are they telling their flock not to buy life christmas trees? So evil Obama would not be able to collect his tree tax but all the christmas tree vendors would be in a pickle.
The point is showing xtians Obama is a muslim.
Gretchen, Doocy and Kilmeade. Add Hannity and you have 4 of the worst liars on earth
Jonathon, you’re an idiot, go back to middle school
What sort of person actually buys Christmas Tree Magazine? And that brings up another question… why they hell is there a Christmas Tree Magazine?
Because Christmas trees like to read it while they’re waiting to be cut down and carted off to a lingering death, of course.
They can throw a 30 dollar a tree tax/fee/whatever they want to call it .. if they want to.. already own an artifical (which was made in the USA btw) and quite happy with it. There are many years I don’t even bother putting it up.
They want to fund research ect.. how about a surcharge on the increased electric use at christmas time to light all these tree’s up.. That is a bigger concern than the trees themselves.
This is why i don’t even bother with it.
Call me scrooge if you want..
So, the live tree industry wants to increase the cost of their product to compete with less expensive competition. Sounds reasonable.
In fact, if you like real trees and have space, get a potted one and plant it on New Year’s Day (if you are in a warm climate) or on the Vernal Equinox (if you don’t). If you have a townhouse, small trees that can stay potted or narrow ones like Italian cypress can work. Apartment dwellers might like nice little rosemary or bay trees.
Im planting bamboo this spring. Its gonna take over the state
You can grow bamboo in Tennessee?
I also heard from a very good source that the Obama administration is pushing for a union for maple trees.
Apparently, the oak trees above them are just too lofty, and they grab up all the light.
Believe it or not, Rick, the standard practice for managing the remaining areas of Florida pine scrub, whethet Pinus palustris in the north of the state or Pinus elliottii densa in the south, is to use periodic controlled burns to make certain that the seedlings of these heritage trees don’t get choked out by overaggressive oaks.
We do that up here in Nebraska, too. Oak saplings seem to grow as fast as weeds in my backyard.
everyone says Oaks grow very slowly. But I can tell you here in Tennessee there as tall as a man in what seems like 15 min.
Here in this part of Louisiana we have tallow trees..they were brought here from China and have taken over. We also call them PopCorn Trees..because they shoot up over night it seems. They take the nutrients from our native oaks, long needled pines, magnolias..etc.
Cut them down they come back, burn them, they come back….
I am a Christmas Tree Grower in Texas and am totally against this law. This law would require me to pay a tax of 15 cents per tree sold in order to fund a national advertising campaign. With the passage of this law I am no longer in control of what promotional message I would actually fund. According to a June 2001 Supreme Court Decision when the advertisements from these type of programs were considered to be industries message to the public they were declared unconstitutional because they violated an individual’s first amendment rights of being forced to pay for speech with which they may not agree. In May 2005 the Supreme Court once again presided over another of these cases and at that time they declared these programs where in accordance with the Constitution because the government declared that these were not in fact industries message to the public, but were in fact “government speech” and thus in effect nullifying an individual’s first amendment rights. Oh the freedoms we will give away when we perceive we might stand to profit and all of this goes unnoticed by the general public who know nothing about and are not involved in Agricultural Commodity Promotion and Research Programs. As for me I abhor the fact that with the passage of this law I will now be forced by my Government with the threat of severe penalties and fines to advertise Christmas Trees on a National Level without getting to decide for myself whether or not I agree with what message will be conveyed and to whom.
Nota bene that this principle was established by the Bush administration through the Bush Supreme Court. Thisis, indeed, a principle that can be debated and a ruling that can be debated or overturned, but that’s not what the Fuxites have their drawers in a bunch for. Their point is that it means the President is a Mooslim making war on Christmas. I would add that lawyers who don’t or even can’t pay their bar dues, as well as endless CLE fees, get their tickets yanked.
Distinguished and overturned, I meant to say. Working on tiny screen with Turkish music in the background.
They talk constantly about the war on Christmas. Well whoever this guy is that is fighting this battle, I feel sorry for him. He’s getting his ass kicked!