Dear John,

In 2017, Donald Trump and the GOP pushed through a $2 trillion tax scam, the lion’s share of which went to billionaires and corporations. Now they want to renew it, which, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), will add as much as $4 trillion to the deficit.

Clearly the Republicans are no longer even trying to stand for any kind of fiscal responsibility.

A study by the Center for American Progress estimates that if the Bush and Trump tax cuts had not been enacted, the national debt would be in steady decline. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, chair of the Senate Budget Committee, notes the basic hypocrisy of the Republican position, which threatens Social Security and Medicare along with other essential programs:

“Republicans racked up the national debt by giving tax breaks to their billionaire buddies, and now they want everyone else to pay for them. It is one of life’s great enigmas that Republicans can... simultaneously cite the deficit to extort massive spending cuts to critical programs, and support a bill that would blow up deficits, to extend trillions in tax cuts for the people who need them the least.”

Now, in an unprecedented decision, the House Ways and Means Committee has asked for public comments on the plan to extend the 2017 Trump-GOP tax cuts. This is our chance to stop this boondoggle of a bill that will harm the economy for years to come. They need to hear all of our comments!

Sign and send a comment to the House Ways and Means Committee on the costs of extending the 2017 tax scam for billionaires and corporations, while putting Social Security and Medicare at risk. We need a tax system that works for all Americans, not just the wealthy few.

Even seemingly small changes in the tax rate can make huge differences. For example, here are the numbers: Under the Trump-GOP plan, the top tax bracket for incomes over $731,200 decreased just 2.6%, from 39.6% to 37%. But for a wealthy household making $2.5 million, this is a windfall of $64,000. Across the nation’s top 400 taxpayers, this 2.6% adds another $800 million per year to the deficit.

Let’s stop coddling billionaires, and reserve tax cuts for those making under $400,000 a year. Meaningful tax reforms will enable working Americans to use the money they have worked hard for to pay for their own necessities, such as food, housing, healthcare, and education.

We need to tell Congress to actually improve the tax system by raising the corporate tax rate and closing loopholes that permit corporations to shift their profits offshore.

Let’s see some real tax relief go to the families that need it the most, through expanding the Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit. Our system must do more to support struggling families and reward work, not wealth.

Sign and send your comment to the House Ways and Means Committee now!

Thank you for helping create a tax system that works for us all.

Robert Reich
Inequality Media Civic Action