To the editor:
In Jason Smith's “Capitol Report” of Nov. 16, he applauds the effects of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed by the first Trump administration. As usual, most of the statements are incorrect. They may not be lies, because Smith may believe what was written.
Smith's Report does not mention the Act's effect on our national debt. According to the Tax Policy Institute the ACT will increase our national debt by about $2 trillion. The following description of the actual effects of the Act is from American Progress dated April 30, 2024:
“An important body of evidence shows that the corporate tax changes in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act failed to produce promised investment or wage increases for the vast majority of U.S. workers. The law did, however, significantly reduce corporate tax collections, diverting resources from public investment to the pockets of wealthy shareholders, executives, and high-paid workers.
“In advocating for the passage of the tax measure, then CEA Chair Hassett claimed that a ‘corporate tax cut to 20 percent would dramatically reduce the trade deficit and increase GDP accordingly.’ In fact, after remaining essentially flat from 2018 to 2019, the trade deficit has widened and continues to be much larger than it was in the five years prior to the passage of the tax bill.
“The benefits of the corporate rate cut were highly skewed toward the top of the earnings distribution.”
The data from the article shows what “highly skewed” means. The people with the least need get over 100 times more than the people with the greatest need. In spite of these facts, Smith's Report says, “For the first time in four years, we have a president who will fight for the working class and who cares about rural communities.” Who can believe that giving 100 times more money to the rich means you care about working and rural people?
I used to say that my hunting dog is like a politician — he sees which way I am going and then pretends he is leading. Now it seems many politicians are more like my lap dog. His actions are driven by the expectation of a reward from his master.
