The Republican leader in the Senate forgot the old saying, “all politics is local,” when he went on national television and basically said that layoffs in your community are not his problem.
On CNN’s “State of the Nation,” Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) tried to defend his vote against even debating a bill that would provide $35 billion for states to rehire or retain approximately 400,000 teachers, police officers, and firefighters, a measure supported by 75 percent of Americans in a recent poll.
"I'm sure Americans do -- I certainly do -- approve of firefighters and police," the Kentucky senator told Crowley -- leaving out teachers. "The question is whether the federal government ought to be raising taxes on 300,000 small businesses in order to send money down to bail out states for whom firefighters and police work -- they are local and state employees."
That’s the question, he says! Senator, I think I have an answer to your question.
Let’s clarify that with some facts, shall we? That tax increase McConnell talks about is a 0.5 percent surcharge on annual adjusted income after the first million dollars you make – which according to Citizens for Tax Justice would affect 0.2 percent of Americans. If you make $999,999, you pay $0 extra. If you make $1,100,000, you pay $500 extra.
If we’re taking McConnell at his word, he’s worried that a 0.5 percent charge on a millionaire’s second million dollars will confuse him or her, and make them not want to invest, spend, or hire. Forget the total lack of demand, that extra $500 charge will make that millionaire completely flummoxed!
McConnell isn’t just out of touch with the Americans whose cash-starved communities have had to cut core employees, raising 911 response times and increasing class sizes. He’s out of touch with the business community. A survey found that businesspeople blamed the state of the economy on “poor demand” over regulation by a 25-1 margin. What they understand better than the Senator is that when you fire someone from a job, public or private, it means they are less able to buy products – any products – and that hurts every aspect of the economy, from top to bottom.
So the question is: should the federal government help your communities rehire and retain people who are critical to educating your children and protecting your families, and should they pay for it with a charge on the super-wealthy so small it hardly cuts into their pool-cleaning budget? The answer is: Yes, definitely, and absolutely.
A majority of businesspeople say “Yes.” A filibuster-busting majority of Americans say “Yes.” Working families who want decent schools and safe communities say “Yes.” Yet those 47 Republicans Senators continue to say, “No.”
“No” is not an answer.
Reposted from Working America's Main Street Blog.