Tag: GOP tax scam

The Trump Tax Cuts Were A Mammoth Fraud

Decades from now, many Americans will have to consult history books to gain an appreciation of the lowest point of Donald Trump’s presidency: his impeachment. But they will be able to feel the effects of his highest point: the 2017 tax bill, which he signed into law two years ago Sunday. That’s because they will still be paying for it.

Trump and his party took great pride in enacting the biggest tax overhaul in a generation. “It’s going to be a tremendous thing for the American people,” the president exulted. But like most things he says, that claim was unfounded. The package turned out to be an extravagant mirage.

Americans thought they got a tax cut. What they really got was a tax increase that hasn’t yet taken effect. When you cut taxes but don’t cut spending to match, as the Nobel laureate economist Milton Friedman often noted, you are not cutting taxes but merely delaying them. And total spending has not been reduced; it has been raised.

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Where The Money Is: How Trump’s Tax Cut Plundered America

Famed bank robber Willie Sutton once explained that he busted into banks because “that’s where the money is.” What a small-timer! Corporate thieves — including the biggest banks — know that the big scores are in the tax code and federal budget. America’s superrich establishment decided to woo Trump and his fanatical constituency to back their agenda of plutocratic plunder.

It’s working. The big legislative accomplishment of the guy who claimed to be a working-class hero was his 2017 Christmastime signing of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. As most Americans now realize, the tax cut was not for them but instead was a disgraceful trillion-dollar-a-year giveaway to corporate giants and their wealthiest shareholders.

According to Americans for Tax Fairness, hundreds of Trump’s corporate backers are already making a killing. In just the first three quarters of 2018, big business quietly pocketed stunning tax savings they would have — and should have — paid to support America’s public needs:

  • Apple: $4.5 billion
  • AT&T: $2.2 billion
  • Bank of America: $2.4 billion
  • Verizon: $1.75 billion
  • Walmart: $1.6 billion

View the complete May 4 article by Jim Hightower on the National Memo website here.

The federal deficit ballooned at start of new fiscal year, up 77 percent from a year before

The Capitol dome in Washington. Credit: Brendan Smialowski, Agence France-Presse via Getty Images

The federal budget deficit ballooned rapidly in the first four months of the fiscal year amid falling tax revenue and higher spending, the Treasury Department said Tuesday, posing a new challenge for the White House and Congress as they prepare for a number of budget battles.

The deficit grew 77 percent in the first four months of fiscal 2019 compared with the same period one year before, Treasury said.

The total deficit for the four-month period was $310 billion, Treasury said, up from $176 billion for the same period one year earlier.

View the complete March 5 article by Damian Paletta on The Washington Post website here.

REAL STORIES: Taxpayers Hurt By Trump’s Broken Promise That They’d Take Home More Money

Trump promised taxpayers they would take home more money because of his tax law. Now, millions of Americans across the country are receiving refunds that are less than they expected, and many are even having to pay more.

Here are real stories of American taxpayers who have been hurt by Trump’s broken promise:

“Refunds are less than what they expected, and in some cases, they’ll end up paying more taxes than they did last year.” – North Carolina accountant

“The standard deduction that was implemented to replace that hasn’t offset the loss in those other deductions…I really don’t think people are getting more money. Especially if you’re earning less than let’s say a quarter of a million dollars.” – Pennsylvania accountant Continue reading “REAL STORIES: Taxpayers Hurt By Trump’s Broken Promise That They’d Take Home More Money”

Treasury calls reports on dip in tax refunds ‘misleading’

The Treasury Department on Monday said reports of a reduction in average tax refunds in 2019 are “misleading.”

In a tweet, the department said refund amounts have been consistent with 2017 levels and “down slightly” from last year, something it blamed on a small sample size. Continue reading “Treasury calls reports on dip in tax refunds ‘misleading’”

Americans Outraged Over GOP Tax Scam: ‘I Got Screwed’

Trump promised taxpayers they would take home more money because of his tax law. Now, millions of Americans who have filed their taxes are receiving refunds that are less than they expected.

Millions of Americans who have filed their 2018 taxes are learning their refunds are less than expected—or that they actually owe the IRS money.

Washington Post: “Millions of Americans filling out their 2018 taxes will probably be surprised to learn that their refunds will be less than expected or that they owe money to the Internal Revenue Service after years of receiving refunds.”

Americans’ tax refunds are hundreds of dollars less than last year, and millions fewer taxpayers are getting refunds at all.

USA Today: “The average tax refund issued so far fell to $1,865, down 8.4 percent from $2,035 at the same time last year, according to IRS statistics. The number of refunds issued also dropped by 24.3 percent.” Continue reading “Americans Outraged Over GOP Tax Scam: ‘I Got Screwed’”

Retiring Speaker Ryan in campaign push for imperiled Republicans

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Retiring U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan on Monday launched a whirlwind tour of a dozen states, where he aims to pump up the campaigns of 25 embattled Republican members of Congress as the party fights to keep control of Congress.

With three weeks until the Nov. 6 congressional elections, most projections show Democrats holding a strong chance of gaining the 23 seats they would need to take a majority of that chamber and more effectively counter President Donald Trump.

Ryan will begin campaigning in the northeast, where he will appear with Representatives John Faso in New York and Leonard Lance in New Jersey, then go on to the Midwest next week to back Erik Paulsen in Minnesota and Rod Blum of Iowa and later return to the East Coast to campaign with Dave Brat of Virginia and Ted Budd of North Carolina.

View the complete article on the KFGO website here.

‘Working mom’ in Erik Paulsen ad is actually a Pennsylvania politician

The scene is straight from Campaign Cinema 101. Natalie Mihalek, self-proclaimed “working mom,” appears in a nice-but-not-too-nice living room, making her seem just like you.

She never says where she’s from. But since this is an ad for suburban Minneapolis Congressman Erik Paulsen, the implication is she’s just an everyday mom from, say, Plymouth or Osseo. The kind who brings lemon bars to science fairs and cheers supportively at her daughter’s T-ball games.

She’s here to talk about how “thrilled” she is with Erik Paulsen’s “middle-class tax cut.”

View the complete October 16 article by Pete Kotz on the CityPages website here.

Two-Thirds Of Americans Haven’t Seen Any Benefit From The Trump Tax Law

A new poll shows that nearly two-thirds of Americans say they have not seen their take-home pay increase as a result of the Trump tax law. The truth about the Trump tax law is that it’s not benefiting working families — it has only increased the gap between the richest Americans and everyone else.

Americans have not benefited from the Trump tax law. It’s clear why more Americans still disapprove than approve of the law.

  • 64% of Americans say they have not seen an increase in their take-home pay from the Trump tax law.

  • A majority of Americans say the Trump tax law has not helped their family financially.

Continue reading “Two-Thirds Of Americans Haven’t Seen Any Benefit From The Trump Tax Law”

Steel is surging under Trump. Will workers benefit?

Richard Lattanzi, mayor of Clairton, Pa., and a safety inspector for a nearby U.S. Steel plant, poses for a portrait Tuesday. Credit: Michael Henninger, The Washington Post

Clairton, PA — When President Trump imposed tariffs on steel imports in June, Richard Lattanzi thought of dozens of his fellow steelworkers who have for years put off badly needed repairs of their cars and homes.

“There was a lot of excitement here; there were a lot of us saying, ‘It’s about time someone is looking out for us,’ ” said Lattanzi, the mayor of this town of 7,000 and a safety inspector at the U.S. Steel plant in nearby West Mifflin. “A lot of people around here were saying, ‘We’re going to be okay.’ ”

Four months later, Lattanzi is less optimistic. Production at U.S. Steel’s facilities have ramped up, and the company announced this summer that, thanks in part to the tariffs, its profits will surge. But in interviews in recent weeks, Lattanzi and other steelworkers said they’re no longer confident they’ll take part in the tariff bounty.

View the complete October 3 article by Jeff Stein on the Washington Post website here.