Tag: GOP corporate welfare

Letter: A simple tax plan isn’t always better

To the Editor:

Congressman Erik Paulsen has been urging us to support the Republican tax plan because it is simpler. He even promised we can spend more time with our families instead of having to do our taxes. However, simpler isn’t always better. Life is complex, and sometimes our tax returns reflect that complexity.

In eliminating complexity, this proposed law eliminates some important deductions. Congressman Paulsen called these “loopholes.” I call them important financial strategies to help us some of us while we are in economic hard times. Continue reading “Letter: A simple tax plan isn’t always better”

Senate tax bill would cut taxes of wealthy and increase taxes on families earning less than $75,000 by 2027

The following article by Heather Long was posted on the Washington Post website November 16, 2017:

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky) said Nov. 14 that he was “optimistic” about adding the individual mandate repeal to the tax bill. (The Washington Post)

The tax bill Senate Republicans are championing would give large tax cuts to millionaires while raising taxes on American families earning $10,000 to $75,000 over the next decade, according to a report released Thursday by the Joint Committee on Taxation, Congress’s official nonpartisan analysts.

President Trump and Republican lawmakers have been heralding their bill as a win for hard-working Americans, but the JCT report casts doubt on that claim. Tax increases for households earning $10,000 to $30,000 would start in 2021 and grow sharply from there. By 2027, most Americans earning $75,000 a year or less would be forced to pay more in taxes, while people earning more than $100,000 a year would continue to get substantial tax cuts. Continue reading “Senate tax bill would cut taxes of wealthy and increase taxes on families earning less than $75,000 by 2027”

The Congressional GOP Tax Plan: A Bad Deal for the American People

The following is from an email from the Center for American Progress received November 16, 2017:

The Capitol is seen at dawn on October 30, 2017, in Washington. Credit: AP/J. Scott Applewhite

The Congressional Republican tax plan is not a good deal for middle-class and working Americans. It fails to cover the full cost of the tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations, adding to the deficit and putting middle-class priorities such as Medicare, Medicaid, education, and infrastructure at risk. Many states would see tens of thousands of families with tax increases, while nearly three-quarters of U.S. states would see hundreds of thousands—and in a few cases well more than 1 million—families with tax increases under the plan. Here’s what you need to know: Continue reading “The Congressional GOP Tax Plan: A Bad Deal for the American People”

The Republican tax plan is deeply unpopular — and unimportant to many Americans

The following article by Philip Bump was posted on the Washington Post website November 15, 2017:

President Trump holds up examples of what a new tax form may look like during a meeting on tax policy, Nov. 2, in Washington. (Photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

While President Trump was on an extended trip through Asia, Republicans on Capitol Hill were pushing forward on his top legislative priority: overhauling the nation’s tax code to reduce the burden on corporations and some American households.

On Tuesday, the Senate proposal was expanded to include a repeal of the individual mandate that’s part of the Affordable Care Act (better known as Obamacare). The effect was to create a sort of policy Frankenstein (actually, a policy Frankenstein’s monster) that combines two of the party’s biggest priorities. It’s an iffy move, given the deep unpopularity of the health-care proposals the Republicans were proposing. But, then, two new polls show the Republican tax proposal isn’t that popular, either, even before health-care reform was jammed inside of it. Continue reading “The Republican tax plan is deeply unpopular — and unimportant to many Americans”

Former Pentagon chiefs to Congress: If you’re serious about defense, don’t pass current GOP tax bill

The following article by Ed O’Keefe and Karoun Demirjian was posted on the Washington Post website November 15, 2017:

Former defense secretary Leon E. Panetta speaks during a discussion on countering violent extremism on Oct. 23 in Washington. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Three former secretaries of defense are warning lawmakers not to enact proposed Republican tax restructuring plans, arguing they will jeopardize future military spending.

Former defense secretaries Leon E. Panetta, Chuck Hagel and Ash Carter told senior congressional leaders in a letter Wednesday that because the tax plan is expected to increase the debt, passing it will probably mean future cuts to Pentagon budgets “for training, maintenance, force structure, flight missions, procurement and other key programs.”

“The result is the growing danger of a ‘hollowed out’ military force that lacks the ability to sustain the intensive deployment requirements of our global defense mission,” the secretaries wrote. They cited two recent accidents involving U.S. Navy destroyers that led to the deaths of 17 sailors as evidence that cuts in military spending can lead to a “lack of adequate training.” Continue reading “Former Pentagon chiefs to Congress: If you’re serious about defense, don’t pass current GOP tax bill”

GOP tax plan in trouble after Republican senator says he won’t back it

The following article by Damian Paletta and Mike Deonis was posed on the Washington Post website November 15, 2017:

Follow Thursday’s updates here: House GOP poised to pass its tax bill as Senate plan suffers setbacks

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) (Susan Walsh/AP)

The Republican effort to overhaul the tax code suffered serious setbacks Wednesday after a conservative senator unexpectedly said he opposed the Senate plan and a GOP moderate raised major concerns about it. The announcements cast doubt whether Republicans would be able to quickly pass what would be their first significant legislative achievement under President Trump.

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) said he opposed both the Senate and House versions of the tax legislation because they benefited corporations at the expense of other, typically smaller companies. Earlier in the day, Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said Republicans had erred when they changed their tax bill this week to include a repeal of the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate, which requires every American to have health insurance or pay a fine. Continue reading “GOP tax plan in trouble after Republican senator says he won’t back it”

Letter: GOP tax plan isn’t good for everyone

The new tax rates proposed by the Republican House will increase what a typical Eden Prairie homeowner pays in income taxes. Rep. Erik Paulsen is pitching this deficit-busting plan by saying it’s good for everyone. It’s not.

Fortunately, it’s not too hard to check the facts. The median household income for Eden Prairie is $97,600. The median Eden Prairie home value is $303,000. The typical property tax for this home value is about $4,000.

If one assumes a 240,000 at 4 percent interest for 30 years, the interest for one year is $9,500. Continue reading “Letter: GOP tax plan isn’t good for everyone”

Republican tax bill could slash $25 billion from Medicare, CBO say

The following article by Emily C. Singer was posted on the mic.com website November 14, 2017:

Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

The House of Representatives’ proposed tax reform bill could have some major unintended consequences, including huge cuts to Medicare — the government-run health care program for seniors.

According to a new report out Tuesday from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, the Republican-backed legislation would trigger an automatic $136 billion reduction in federal spending — better known as sequestration — in the current fiscal year.

The CBO said $25 billion of those cuts would come from Medicare, the popular social insurance program that provides health care to seniors age 65 and up. Continue reading “Republican tax bill could slash $25 billion from Medicare, CBO say”

Shocking: Erik Paulsen backs a tax plan that helps his corporate supporters

The following article by Cory Zurowski was posted on the CityPages website November 14, 2017:

The ink on the Republican tax bill blueprint was still wet when Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-Minn.) shared morning coffee with MPR’s Cathy Wurzer.

What’s in the GOP tax plan for you? According to Rep. Paulsen, it’s making filing returns so simple you will “complete it on a postcard.” Credit: Star Tribune/Glen Stubbe

It was late September. GOP leaders had unveiled what could become the most significant tax code overhaul in generations, the centerpiece of which is slashing the corporate rate by around 43 percent.

Paulsen, who represents a district that wraps around the western metro from Chanhassen to Wayzata to Coon Rapids, sits on the House Ways and Means Committee, the body tasked with banging out the bill’s details.

“That’s a great question,” Paulsen told Wurzer after she asked how “big tax cuts for everyone” would benefit low-income and middle class earners. Continue reading “Shocking: Erik Paulsen backs a tax plan that helps his corporate supporters”