Obama dismisses 47% who voted for Romney

Re: "Lawmakers poised for last-chance negotiations" and "Deal reached to halt 'milk cliff,' " Dec. 31

All the "cool" kids, women who need birth control and abortions, and Hispanics who don't like us voted for Obama. President Obama dismisses the 47 percent of people who didn't vote for him. To paraphrase Mitt Romney, "They won't like anything I do, so I will just ignore them."How do you negotiate with that kind of arrogance?

Do we care about Obama's legacy? No! Are we upset that House Speaker John Boehner couldn't get the president to talk to him for more than 45 minutes? No! We worry about our paychecks, taxes, keeping jobs if we have one, finding jobs if we don't, keeping our homes, paying for our kids to go to college, and $8 milk.

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I am a retired white American who needs the money I have worked a lifetime to obtain. I am tired of people reaching into my purse. I certainly don't need my president doing the same.

-- Mary Evans

Arlington

Small Virginia college also on 'Best Value' list

Re:"Washington-area colleges among best values in nation," Dec. 31

This article noted the prominence of public colleges in Virginia and Maryland on Kiplinger's list of "Best Values in Public Colleges" in the United States. Another article discussed the "broader benefits of studying liberal arts in small settings" as "proven launching pads to the top of business, government and academia".

Kiplinger also publishes "Best Values in Private Colleges" with separate rankings of liberal arts colleges. Christendom College on the Shenandoah River in Front Royal is ranked No. 42 among private liberal arts colleges. Only one Virginia college is on that list -- and no Maryland college is ranked ahead of it.

-- Thomas L. McFadden

McLean

Tax breaks are a reverse individual mandate

Re: "John Roberts is the person of the year," Dec. 26

Grousing that Chief Justice John Roberts "rewrote the law" and allowed the government to be able to mandate individual actions by charging a nominal amount and calling it a "tax," Philip Klein suggests Roberts is "person of the year" for upholding Obamacare.

Klein treats Roberts' decision as something drastic and novel when, in fact, it has a long, established history. The government has long been doing this in reverse, giving tax breaks for individual actions deemed desirable for the country, such as owning a home.

During the Civil War, wealthy Northerners were also able to "buy" their way out of military service by, in essence, paying a "tax" very similar to Obamacare's.

-- Dino Drudi

Alexandria