Dear editor,

Trump budget makes America great for billionaires.

Donald Trump’s 2018 Budget was promoted as “Taxpayer First.” A more accurate description is “Billionaires First.” There is little benefit for the average American, and the poorest among us are simply getting tossed under the limos of the wealthiest Americans. The Washington Post summed up the budget as, “Helps the Rich at the Expense of the Poor.”

At a time when the wealthiest one-tenth of one percent owns as much wealth as the bottom 90 percent of Americans, the Trump budget is loaded with corporate welfare and tax cuts for the super wealthy. The rest of us simply get cuts.

Trump wants to eliminate the real estate tax. Unless you have an estate worth over 5.5 million, you are not affected by this tax. Wealthy investors will no longer be subject to a surcharge.

That’s great news if you were fortunate enough to make 200k on your investments last year. For the rest of us, we still have to pay high sales taxes, expensive licensing fees and other regressive taxes
that hit the poorest Americans very hard.

There is no question we need to reduce our national debt, but there must be shared sacrifice. If you want to cut social welfare, then cut corporate welfare as well. If you want to reduce Medicaid, pass a bill allowing the taxpayer to negotiate for lower prices on prescription drugs. Cutting things like “Meals on Wheels” and heating assistance programs for seniors citizens while handing billions in tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans is grossly unfair, but not surprising given the influence of big money in our nation’s capital.

Multi-millionaires and corporations have legions of lobbyists and lawyers to do their bidding in Washington. The average person has only their U.S. Representative. Unfortunately, many U.S. Representatives are bought and paid for by the very same people who are getting all of the breaks in the Trump budget.

I want to represent the people of Michigan’s 1st District, not the lobbyists on K Street. To find out more, go to
bradyforcongress.org.

Dwight Brady
Candidate for Congress
Marquette