U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Battle Ground, gives homeowners a tax increase, Trump crows. Hasn’t Herrera Beutler heard about the inequality in America that has given us a class society? As cited on Fareed Zakaria’s, Dec. 10, 2017 show, Global Public Square (GPS), an Allianz study finds that the United States has the greatest inequality of the developed countries.
Mr. Zakaria stated that three people, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, have more wealth than the poorest half of Americans. And now Herrera Beutler wants to give the top 400 families, whom bring home more than $87 million a year another million each year with this Trump tax scam. Meanwhile, in 2027 those making less than $75,000 a year, around the poorest 58 percent of families, will receive no tax relief or even a tax increase for the poorest of the poor.
For Washington, this means that 520,000 families will see a tax increase and 290,000 people will lose health insurance. Republicans have a rich history of currying the favor of the rich. Reagan dropped the top income tax rate from 70 percent to 28 percent. George W. Bush contributed $570,000 to the top 1 percent (146,000 families) between 2004 and 2012 according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Further, according to the Center’s article, the legacy of the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts: The bottom 20 percent of households received the smallest tax cuts, with their after-tax incomes increasing by just 1 percent due to the tax cuts. Yes, Democrats have raised taxes especially in response to the Republicans running the economy into the Great Recession of ’08. Deregulation, unfettered speculation and unhinged war-mongering roiled as Obama came into his presidency. Due to his handling of the economic tragedy we now have full employment.
It is another Republican lie that this current tax scam is meant to stimulate the economy. The numbers above betray the real reason — greed. There have been no public hearings on these so-called tax cuts which marks the behavior more of an autocracy than a democracy.
Given the numbers above, the only way this tax reform can be called a cut is if one does not recognize the poor as their constituents. To end where we started, Fareed’s GPS show reported that throughout history, if a society becomes “too unequal, violence and state collapse could follow.” Since the wealthiest 1 percent possess more wealth than the bottom 90 percent in this country, we must regain our democracy and stave off collapse by voting Herrera Beutler out of office.
May I suggest that once out of office she read Michael Harrington’s “Other America” before seeking office in our democracy again.
