"You Didn't Build That" ... Then Who Did Build Those Roads and Bridges?

President Obama wants the greedy fat cats to pay more taxes. He also wants them to realize that government built the roads and bridges, among other things, that made their success possible.

I don't get it. I really don't. I guess I don't understand what the government really is. I thought it was a servant of We the People. I thought we were a self governing society.

But then, I'm probably at a disadvantage when it comes to understanding how our President thinks about our government and its supposedly self governing citizens. You see, unlike our President, I actually worked in the private sector for several decades. So maybe I don't understand who this government is that's he's talking about. And maybe if I did, I wouldn't like it very much, if at all.

In other words, who is the government, if not We the People? Who pays the taxes to build the roads and bridges, hire the teachers, congressmen, bureaucrats and so forth, if not We the People? And who pays the most taxes, if not the portion of We the People to whom he says "You didn't build that."

But let's continue.

My opinion, undoubtedly in direct opposition to that of our President, is that We the People are far too trusting and not demanding enough of our "public servants." My further view is that our "elected representatives" waste our money at will and don't even stop to think that it's our money they're wasting. They believe it's theirs. So that's where the President's comment "You didn't build that" originated. And we let him get away with it, and lots of other harmful stuff, too. But let's return to the subject of taxes now.

Most of us have no idea whatsoever how much we pay to the various governments (local, state, federal, schools and so forth) in various kinds of taxes each year. And that we in fact "did build that."

We may know the total federal and state income taxes we paid, but add in the Social Security taxes, Medicare/Medicaid taxes, sales taxes, property taxes, utility taxes, protectionist tariffs (which increase consumer prices), gasoline taxes and such, and it amounts to a whole lot, the actual amount being somewhat hidden and difficult, if not impossible, to determine accurately.

But let's move on now to the roads and who builds them.

Who Really Gets Rich Off High Gas Prices? is subtitled 'Exxon made seven cents per gallon in 2011. Federal, state and local taxes siphoned off 50 cents in taxes:'

"With the average price of gas in America hovering around $3.50 per gallon for regular unleaded, it costs more than $50 to fill a typical car's 15-gallon tank this summer. Why does gas cost so much?

You may blame high gas prices on rich oil company executives or greedy gas station owners. The truth is that governments rake in a larger profit at the pump than anyone—and with gas taxes on the rise in many parts of the country, there's no relief in sight.

The price of a gallon of gas is based on the combination of four costs: that of crude oil, of refining gas, of distribution and marketing, and of taxes.

Crude oil costs make up about 76% of the cost of gasoline, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Thus $2.66 of a $3.50 gallon of gasoline is set before the oil is even refined.

Global markets, reacting to supply and demand, determine the cost of crude oil. Just like any commodity, from gold to corn, a shortage in supply or an increase in demand leads to a rise in prices.


Refining oil is the next step in the process—and the next expense for drivers. Gasoline is extracted from crude oil and additives, including lubricants and detergents to reduce engine deposits, are added.

As of January 2012, the EIA found that refining was responsible for 6% of the cost of gasoline. Distribution and marketing—the part of the process most apparent to consumers—constitutes another 6% of gas prices. That portion of the cost includes the shipping and transportation of the gasoline, a markup to cover retailers' expenses, and any advertising created to appeal to customers.

The remaining 12%—or almost 50 cents per gallon today—goes directly to federal, state and local governments in an array of sales and excise taxes. The federal gas tax is 18.4 cents on every gallon of gasoline sold in America. State gas-tax rates vary from a low of eight cents per gallon in Alaska to a jarring 49 cents per gallon in New York. Other states where it's steep to fill up include California and Connecticut—each with 48.6-cent-per-gallon gas taxes—and Hawaii, at 47.1 cents per gallon.


Some local governments have gotten in on the act, too. In California, local sales and excise taxes on gasoline average 3.1%, according to the Los Angeles Times. That works out to about 12 cents in local taxes for each gallon of gas, based on the state's current average of $3.80 per gallon.


Skokie, Ill., a suburb north of Chicago, levies a gas tax of three cents per gallon. You'll pay an extra nickel per gallon at gas stations in Eugene, Ore. And the next time you're gambling in Las Vegas, you'll need plenty of cash left over to cover Clark County's 10 cent local tax on a gallon of gas. In

Florida, Brevard County (home to the Kennedy Space Center) expects to siphon more than $15 million from motorists this year, according to the newspaper Florida Today.


Put this all together, and government makes far more from gas sales than all of the oil companies put together. Exxon, for example, made only seven cents per gallon of gasoline in 2011. That's a drop in the bucket compared to the nearly 50 cents per gallon that federal, state and local governments rake in on an average gallon of gas pumped in the U.S.


Most people have to drive—whether to work, to the grocery store, to pick up kids from school or for dozens of other reasons. For some families struggling to make ends meet, paying 50 cents per gallon in taxes may be the difference between driving to work and putting dinner on the table.


So the next time you begin to blame oil companies, speculators or service stations for high gas prices, remember that no one gets richer off of gasoline than government."

My Take

First, of course, we could and should develop more of our domestic energy capability by approving the Keystone pipeline and similar projects. That would increase supply and reduce prices at the pump.

And we could also decrease taxes on gasoline and thereby further encourage consumer spending, adding to the nation's economic activity.

But those aren't the relevant questions herein. The following are: Don't successful business leaders drive cars? Don't their spouses and children do likewise? And don't these businesses transport parts and finished products on trucks over the roads of America? And don't they pay the lion's share of the gasoline taxes?

So who really built the roads --- the government or the fat cat greedy business leaders and other taxpayers?

It appears that President Obama doesn't know the answer to that simple question.

But then, who hires the teachers, police and fire fighters? And the other public sector employees?

I wonder if he knows the answer to those questions, too.

Sorry, Mr. President, but you're wrong about who built what. We the People really did build that and everything else as well. Air Force One too. We own it. You just use it.

This debate and fight is not about the rich versus the poor or anything of a similar nature. It's simply about the We the People versus the government knows best gang.

Thanks. Bob.