The party that beats the drum about the need to cut “entitlement” programs (those programs we’ve paid into all our working lives like Social Security and Medicare) in order to get deficits under control has just passed legislation giving massive tax cuts to already profitable corporations, with no strings attached, and enormous savings to those whose incomes top $700,000. It benefits those whose major source of income is capital gains and real estate gains, as opposed to earned income.
Their next trick will be to get a huge infrastructure bill passed. I strongly support infrastructure spending, but this is on the heels of a huge cut in revenue. That’s like quitting your job and then deciding you want to buy a house. Where do you think they will go to plug that revenue hole? Speaker of the House Rep. Paul Ryan and others have made no secret of the fact that they want to cut so-called “entitlement” programs. Watch for Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid to be attacked while pitting youth against the elderly.
We can’t just sigh, bemoan government and not vote. The rich have been rewarded for their outsized contributions to political candidates. We can’t match their spending so we have to be aware of the misinformation in ads, educate ourselves and always vote.
