Campaign Action
This is certainly a new wrinkle in the massive wealth redistribution from the bottom up project that Republicans call a tax bill: A good portion of that redistribution is going to go into the pockets of 13 members of Congress who voted for it—and three Democrats who did not. That comes from an amendment Sen. John Cornyn inserted at the last moment.
Cornyn’s amendment, which was introduced just hours before the Senate passed the tax bill on Dec. 2, provides a tax deduction for investors in energy-related master limited partnerships (MLPs) — investment entities primarily used by oil and gas pipeline corporations.
Federal lawmakers collectively own between $4.6 million and $10.6 million worth of energy-related MLPs, according to personal financial disclosures reviewed by International Business Times. Thirteen of the 16 lawmakers who own stakes in energy-related MLPs are Republicans. All 13 of those lawmakers voted for the tax bill in their respective chambers. […]
Congress's top stakeholders in the MLPs are all Republicans—they include Michigan Rep. David Trott (up to $4.4 million), New Jersey Rep. Tom MacArthur (up to $2.3 million), Georgia Republican Sen. David Perdue (up to $1.25 million), Texas Rep. Pete Sessions (up to $550,000), Texas Rep. Kenny Marchant (up to $477,000) and Texas Sen. Cruz (up to $300,000). The tax provision could prove particularly lucrative for lawmakers, because their holdings can generate significant annual income—as one example, Cruz in 2016 listed more than $11,000 in earnings from his stake in one fossil fuel MLP.
On the whole, the 16 elected officials who own stakes in the MLPs are far wealthier than the average members of Congress—they have an average 2015 net worth of over $21 million, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. MacArthur, whose net worth is estimated at $64.5 million, was the lone member of the New Jersey congressional delegation, which includes five Republicans, to vote for the tax bill.
That's going to make for some really great Democratic ads in 2018, even if this bill gets derailed by the opposition. If there are truly any fence-sitting Republicans on this bill, this blatant self-enrichment plot by their colleagues should be enough for them to drive their decision. Do they really want to be associated with that?
More to the point, do they really want to give Ted Cruz tens of thousands of dollars?
Jam your senators' and representative's phone lines at (202) 224-3121. Tell them to vote "no" on the Republican tax bill.