That's true, one government official said. But the import quotas "jack up the domestic price" of sugar, he said, so consumers pay when they go to the grocery store. "In the president's budget, they [the sugar folks] are benefiting from the program so they should make a contribution."
Turns out there used to be such a tax in the 1990s as part of an effort to get rid of the federal deficit. But when the budget went into surplus, the sugar tax was peeled back. Putting it back on will not be easy. The sugar lobby has beet producers in 12 states, mostly in the Rocky Mountains and Upper Midwest, and the cane folks are big in Hawaii, Texas, Louisiana and, of course, Florida.
_____In the Loop_____
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The U.N.'s Taller, So He's Moving Up (The Washington Post, Mar 9, 2005)
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Free Speech Is Not for the Taking (The Washington Post, Mar 7, 2005)
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Narcissus Is Now Greek AND Roman (The Washington Post, Mar 4, 2005)
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Hoosier Coach Cover-Up (The Washington Post, Mar 2, 2005)
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A Smiley Face on Social Security (The Washington Post, Feb 28, 2005)
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More In the Loop
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Friday's Question:
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Frost on Fox
Former House member Martin Frost (D-Tex.) has signed an "exclusive deal" -- for an undisclosed sum -- to be a political contributor with Fox News. Frost, who two weeks ago gave up on a bid to head the Democratic National Committee, said he was "very pleased to be working with Fox News Channel." "Americans turn to FNC first for news about important events, and I welcome the opportunity," Frost said in a news release, "to be a part of the nation's leading cable news network." Phew! That was quick transition.
Turns out, wasn't much of a transition at all. Seems Frost had once been in the news business -- a degree in journalism, a stint as a newspaper reporter and covering Congress for the Congressional Quarterly -- before entering politics.
"I think there is a need for strong Democratic voices on Fox," he told us yesterday, something he said he and his former Democratic colleagues in the House used to talk about.
Frost joins former Coalition Provisional Authority spinmeister Dan Senor, who also recently signed up with Fox to opine about important matters.
In Transit
Moving about . . . Scott Whitaker, chief of staff at the Department of Health and Human Services under secretary Tommy G. Thompson, has moved to the Biotechnology Industry Association as executive vice president, the No. 2 spot.
John C. Rood, former deputy assistant secretary of defense for forces policy (handling missile defense and nuclear stuff), is back at the National Security Council, taking Robert G. Joseph's position as senior director for proliferation strategy, counterproliferation and homeland defense.
Rood had been deputy to Joseph, who is moving to the State Department.
