The government is leaving no stone unturned. A tax on Christmas trees was brought to the floor this week. Is nothing sacred? Christian Science Monitor reports:

The so-called �Christmas Tree tax� had all the makings of a grand political theater.�After the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) approved Tuesday a 15-cent tax on fresh Christmas trees, some conservative Republicans fired back at the Obama administration.�A �Grinch move,� Rep. Steve Scalise (R) of Louisiana told Fox News.”A�marketing slush fund for the Christmas tree industry,��Sen. Jim DeMint (R) of South Carolina said in his blog.�So on Wednesday, the day the Christmas tree tax was to take effect, the Obama administration delayed it.

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The Heritage Foundation blog The Foundry comments:

Christmas is more than a month away, but the Obama Administration just couldn�t wait to hang a shiny new ornament on every fresh Christmas tree in America: a 15-cent tax�to support a new federal program to improve the image and marketing of Christmas trees. Following a public outcry, the White House changed course, not a day later.

No, it�s not a joke. Heritage Vice President David Addington broke the story Tuesday night on�Foundry.org, writing that in the�Federal Register�of November 8, it was announced that the�Secretary of Agriculture will appoint a Christmas Tree Promotion Board�to run a �program of promotion, research, evaluation, and information designed to strengthen the Christmas tree industry�s position in the marketplace.� Among its goals: �to enhance the image of Christmas trees and the Christmas tree industry in the United States.� Yes, you read that correctly. The Obama Administration wanted the federal government to handle public relations for Christmas trees.

How did the White House want to pay for it? With a 15-cent fee on all sales of fresh Christmas trees by sellers of more than 500 trees per year. As Addington wrote, �Of course, the Christmas tree sellers are free to pass along the 15-cent federal fee to consumers who buy their Christmas trees.� More taxes for American consumers in the middle of the Christmas season? Some present.

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