Disastrous Tax Plan
Dear Friend,
We're just hours away from the final vote in the Senate on President Trump and Republicans' disastrous tax plan.
This tax bill is the result of backroom deals and giveaways to the well-connected. And it's based on the same failed trickle-down economics that busted the budget and failed to produce growth, going back to the 1980s. Trickle-down economics gives tax breaks to wealthy under the ruse that everyday people - someday - will be better off because big corporations and investors will do something better with the money than working families.
The reality is, within the next 10 years, the top 1 percent, those making nearly $1 million each year, will get more of the tax benefits than the other 99 percent of Americans combined. In New Mexico, more than 200,000 households who earn less than $74,000 a year will see their taxes go up.
Republicans have also returned to their reckless effort to undercut health care coverage that Americans count on. They have included in this tax plan a repeal of a key provision of the Affordable Care Act that will result in 13 million Americans losing their health insurance over the next decade. And health insurance premiums paid by many others will increase by about 10 percent each year. AARP estimates that the Senate tax bill will result in higher premiums for seniors across the country.
It's clear that this is a bad deal for the majority of Americans.
Congress should be focusing on important goals such as growing the economy and driving up wages for working families. We could provide all children with early learning opportunities, offer students free tuition at community colleges and public universities, ensure broadband access for every American, rebuild our infrastructure, and take bold actions to fight the opioid epidemic.
But we're not going to be able to make those investments if Republicans insist on adding $1.4 trillion to the debt for tax giveaways to the wealthy. When tax revenues dry up because of this plan, Congress will be forced to make hard decisions about funding Medicare, Social Security, public schools, our national labs, and our military.
I oppose this shameful tax bill and the terrible process that led up to it. I remain committed to finding real, bipartisan to our nation's challenges. You can count on me to hold the Trump Administration accountable and keep fighting to invest in our communities and improve the lives of New Mexico families.
Sincerely,
MARTIN HEINRICH
United States Senator
