The president, for some reason, thinks that the government can take that tax money and provide for the needs of groups like the YMCA, Boys and Girls Clubs or community food banks better. That thinking by the president is pure baloney.

Another interesting facet of the president's address Tuesday was that although the he was clear he wanted to remove the tax breaks for folks who supported our various charities, he refused to address the fact the Senate had pulled his cornerstone pre-election promise to give a tax break to middle-class American wage earners.

It seems to us that a president, so anxious to pass measures that would triple our national debt in 10 years, would insist on keeping his promise to the very people who elected him - middle income Americans.