Red State Welfare Queens by Mike Hudson

The Tax Foundation keeps track of the amount of federal income tax paid by individual and corporate taxpayers in each of the 50 states, and then figures out how much on the dollar the various states get back.

Here in New York, for example, we get back 80 cents for every dollar we send to Washington.

New Jersey taxpayers get back 57 cents.

In John Kerry's home state of Massachusetts -- "Taxa-chusetts," George W. Bush sneered -- they receive a return of 78 cents on the dollar.

Few of the "Blue States" get as much back from the federal government as they pay.

The Red States do, though.

They get it back and then some.

All those Republicans up in Alaska get $1.89 for every dollar they send to Washington, nearly double.

The Bible-thumpers down in West Virginia cost us $1.86 on the dollar, and those self-reliant cowboys out in Montana rake in $1.60.

While the Mormon religion places strictures on its members accepting government money in the form of public assistance, it turns out that the whole damn state of Utah is on welfare, receiving $1.20 for every dollar they put in.

According to the Tax Foundation study, every one of the Red States gets as much or more than it pays, with the exception of Nevada.

I'm going to have to tell my dad about this one.