"AMERICANS WILL COLLECTIVELY SPEND MORE ON TAXES IN 2016 THAN THEY WILL ON FOOD, CLOTHING, AND HOUSING COMBINED"

Let that statement sink in for a minute:
"Americans will collectively spend more on taxes in 2016 than they will on food, clothing, and housing combined."
That statement was made in a report published by The Tax Foundation titled "Tax Freedom Day 2016 is April 24."
It's bad enough that Americans have to work from January 1 to April 24 just to pay the nation's taxes.  That doesn't even include borrowing by the federal government, which would push the date all the way to May 10.  That's more than a third of the year, folks.
But just think about the statement:
"Americans will collectively spend more on taxes in 2016 than they will on food, clothing, and housing combined."
How can that possibly be true?  If it is true, how could higher taxes possibly be the answer to the country's problems?  In my opinion, the answer to that question is obvious: if government consumes more  than food, clothing, and housing combined, higher taxes cannot be the answer to the country's problems.