Government Spending, Biden Impeachment, and Lessons from Bonhoeffer

On this September 21, 2023 broadcast, Kim Monson examines how government at every level impacts the lives of ordinary citizens. Broomfield City Council candidate Maria Boutrous sounds the alarm on runaway property taxes, Center for Renewing America communications director Rachel Cauley breaks down the Biden impeachment inquiry and government shutdown debate, and retired Air Force Colonel Bill Rutledge draws chilling parallels between Nazi Germany and threats to liberty today through the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Biden Impeachment and the Government Shutdown Debate

Start listening at 35:00 – Hour 1

Rachel Cauley argues that conservatives should not fear a government shutdown if it means stopping the funding of agencies weaponized against the American people. The communications director for the Center for Renewing America served in the Trump White House during previous shutdown battles and offers insider perspective on what actually happens when government funding lapses.

Social Security and Medicare continue unaffected during shutdowns. The White House controls which services remain open, and under Trump, national parks stayed accessible and essential services continued. The Obama administration, by contrast, theatrically erected fences around the World War II Memorial to score political points. The real question, Cauley contends, is whether Republicans will keep funding Biden administration policies at Nancy Pelosi spending levels.

On impeachment, Cauley dismisses claims that evidence is lacking against Biden. She criticizes Ken Buck and other Republicans who question the impeachment inquiry, noting that Buck “beclowned himself” in his exchange with Attorney General Merrick Garland. The first impeachment hearing is scheduled for the following Tuesday, though Cauley predicts Senate Republicans will ultimately kill any impeachment effort.

“If we don’t have a serious conversation about stopping really bad government funding and we think government shutdown is the end of the world, then we’re never going to get wins for the American people.”

Rachel Cauley, Communications Director, Center for Renewing America

Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Lessons of History

Start listening at 70:08 – Hour 2

Bill Rutledge, a 95-year-old retired Air Force Colonel, traces the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the rise of Nazi Germany, drawing disturbing parallels to contemporary America. Reading Eric Metaxas’s biography Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy, Rutledge identifies warning signs that appeared before the Holocaust: government control of media, book burnings, elimination of political opponents, and the persecution of religious minorities.

Bonhoeffer, born into German aristocracy in 1906, earned his doctorate in theology by age 21. He studied in America, where exposure to Harlem’s black churches and Southern segregation shaped his understanding of injustice. When Hitler rose to power in 1933, Bonhoeffer recognized the evil immediately and spent the rest of his life resisting it, ultimately paying with his life in April 1945.

Rutledge recounts the Night of the Long Knives in June 1934, when Hitler eliminated the SA leadership to consolidate power with the German army. The parallels to modern political persecution are not lost on Rutledge, who notes that Hitler’s hatred of Jews began in the early 1920s and culminated in the Holocaust. The lesson: evil incubates quietly before erupting into catastrophe.

“In June of 1934, they had what was called the Night of the Long Knives. What happened that night is that the Gestapo and the SA, which was another active arm under the new government, they rounded up the leaders of the SA and they took them into, well, it was just like an arrest.”

Bill Rutledge, Retired U.S. Air Force Colonel

Broomfield Property Taxes and the Spending Crisis

Start listening at 18:53 – Hour 1

Maria Boutrous exposes the financial squeeze facing Broomfield residents as property taxes skyrocket while city council refuses to lower mill levies. Running as a successor candidate in a special election following a successful recall, Boutrous presents stark numbers: property crime up 225% since 2017, an average of one to two car thefts daily, and property tax increases of 40% to 70% for many homeowners.

The city stands to collect a $68 million windfall from property tax increases, yet city council members continue to avoid discussions about returning money to taxpayers. Boutrous notes that while Broomfield’s population grew 8% over five years, the operating budget ballooned 56% in the same period. Weld County, four times Broomfield’s size, carries zero debt and recently lowered its mill levy by seven points.

The human toll extends beyond finances. Boutrous, an addiction counselor by profession, connects housing instability to the mental health crisis gripping communities. HUD statistics indicate that spending more than 50% of income on housing puts families at risk of homelessness, and the fastest-growing homeless demographic is elderly people on fixed incomes who can no longer afford their property taxes.

“The biggest concerns that I am hearing are property crime, which is up a staggering 225% since 2017. Broomfield is averaging one and sometimes two car thefts daily.”

Maria Boutrous, Broomfield City Council Candidate