Trickle-down on steroids

Dear editor:

The current corporate/mega-rich tax cut bills being rushed through Congress are perhaps the largest transfer of wealth in American history. The purpose of these bills is to pay off the mega donor class. For rich donors sending a contribution to a politician is a transactional enterprise. They are making an investment in that politician and they expect a return on that investment. As GOP Rep. Chris Collins of New York put it, "My donors are basically saying get it (the tax bill) done or don't call me again."

Two-thirds of the multi-trillions in tax cut in these bills go to multinational corporations and billionaires. In order to conform to Senate rules, the bill cannot add more than $1.5 trillion to the national debt. For months, the corporate/mega-rich tax cut bills have been in search for a way to cap the debt increase to $1.5 trillion. The bills begin with a tax cut for all, but all of the offsets (that which will add to your taxes) are designed to be taken by the working class and college students. As a result, millions of middle-class Americans and college students will actually pay higher taxes.

This is a trickle-down economics bill on steroids. History has shown that these types of tax cuts have not trickled down to the middle class and have never raised wages.

Corporate CEOs recently gathered at The Wall Street Journal for a conference. They were asked if their company was planning capital investments or increasing their payroll as a result of the lowing of the corporate tax rate. Only five out of 100 said they would make one of those investments. This is the reality of supply-side economics in action.

A major selling point for these bills is the massive investment in America by these corporations. These CEOs said they had no plans to do so. Companies can spend their money as they wish. Just don't believe the lie that giving trillions of dollars in tax cut to corporations and the mega-rich will stimulate the economy to record growth and higher wages. It has never happened and will not happen now.

Retired persons should keep in mind that $25 billion will be taken from Medicare. If a final tax plan passes Medicare, premiums will spike and don't count on any cost-of-living increases in Social Security. It is predicted that all health insurance (public and private) will increase 10 percent as an offset for this tax cut bill.

I see this corporate/mega-rich tax cut bill as a crisis for the working folk in America. Not to pick on one family, but a study on how this tax bill would affect President Trump and his family concluded that the president and his family would get over $1 billion tax savings. The point is that this one famous family will receive a larger tax break than every working-class family in Arkansas combined.

Get involved in stopping this scam before it is too late.

Sam Albright

Hot Springs

Editorial on 11/26/2017

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