Morrison fights urge to tax his way out of a problem

His first instinct? Rachel Baxendale, The Australian, September 5:

Scott Morrison says his first instinct is never to try to solve a problem with a tax, after his Agriculture Minister David Littleproud declared he wanted a 10c a litre milk levy to support drought-affected farmers.

His second instinct? Joe Kelly, The Australian, June 20 last year:

Scott Morrison’s $6.2 billion levy on the big banks was rammed through parliament last night with Labor support … Mr Morrison argues the levy is … a permanent “structural measure”.

The government instinct. Ronald Reagan, August 15, 1986:

Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidise it.

Sudanese? Only 1 per cent of crimes. abc.net.au, September 5:

Social justice advocate Nyadol Nyuon leapt to the defence of the Sudanese community, saying: “The overwhelming majority of crimes in Victoria are committed by Australian and New Zealand-born people … South Sudanese do commit about 1 per cent of the offences.”

But 10 per cent are involved in crime. Craig Butt, The Age, Sept 5:

The most recent data from the Crime Statistics Agency … shows a definite over-representation of (Sudanese-born) people … one in 10 people from Sudan or South Sudan living in Victoria were involved in a criminal incident last year … a far higher rate than for any of the other nationalities … The incident rate for assaults, aggravated robberies and aggravated burglaries (is also) far higher … relative to their portion of the population, Sudanese-born Victorians have a rate of offending which far exceeds that of the general community.

Philip Rucker and Robert Costa, The Washington Post, September 4: (Bob) Woodward recounts (in his new book, Fear, that at) a National Security Council meeting on Jan 19, Trump … questioned why the government was spending resources in the (Korean peninsula) at all. “We’re doing this in order to prevent World War III,” Defence Secretary Jim Mattis told him. After Trump left … “Mattis was particularly exasperated and alarmed, telling close associates that the president acted like — and had the understanding of — ‘a fifth or sixth-grader’.” … “Secretaries of defence don’t always get to choose the president they work for,” Mattis told friends … prompting laughter … (Woodward quotes) John Kelly, Trump’s chief of staff (as saying:) “He’s an idiot … He’s gone off the rails. We’re in Crazytown.” … (Woodward says Kelly told former economic adviser Gary) Cohn: “I would have taken that resignation letter and shoved it up his ass six different times.”

Statement by chief of staff General John Kelly, September 5:

The idea I ever called the President an idiot is not true, in fact it’s exactly the opposite … He and I both know this story is total BS … This is another pathetic attempt to distract from the administration’s many successes.

Statement from Secretary of Defence James Mattis, September 5:

The contemptuous words … attributed to me in Woodward’s book were never uttered by me … While I generally enjoy reading fiction, this is uniquely Washington brand of literature … (our successes include) the near annihilation of the ISIS caliphate, unprecedented burden sharing by our NATO allies, the repatriation of US (soldiers’) remains from North Korea … That I would show contempt for … President Trump … is a product of someone’s rich imagination.