BREAKING: Senate votes to end Bush tax cuts for the richest 2%
David Elliot
Wow. Can you believe it? The Senate just passed the Middle Class Tax Cut Act by 51 to 48, with 51 Democrats voting for it and all Republicans voting against it.
Senate Democrats voted to end the Bush tax cuts for the richest 2% of Americans who don't need them. And you helped make it happen. USAction members like you sent more than 80,000 emails and calls into the Senate in the past week and we are going to keep fighting.
It’s the right thing to do to get our economy back on track and a good first step to repair a tax system rigged for the ultra-rich and corporations.
The House won't consider this commonsense bill so the real fights lay ahead. And even after the vote, the fight isn't over. We'll be holding Congress accountable throughout the campaign season up to Election Day and through the lame-duck session. We're aiming to take back the House, targeting for defeat those who side with the 2% at the expense of everybody else. Will you donate $5 now so we can continue to hold Congress accountable to their constituents, not their wealthy campaign donors?
The Bush tax cuts that are set to expire at the end of the year always disproportionately favored the rich — where those making over $1 million a year got an average tax break of $143,000, while middle-class families got an average tax break of $1,000.1
Ending the Bush tax cuts on household income above $250,000 would save the government nearly $1 trillion, according to Congress’ Joint Committee of Taxation, compared to the GOP plan to extend all of the cuts over the next decade.2
And that little line about small businesses being hurt by ending the Bush tax cuts for the rich? Well it’s a flat out lie. According to a report by the Treasury Department, fewer than 3 percent of small business owners make over $250,000 a year.3 Small businesses are part of the 98%, just like you and me.
This fight won’t be easy. Republicans in the House continually refuse to raise taxes on the nation’s wealthiest Americans. But a tax cut for everybody else? That just doesn’t seem to be a priority.
We need a tax system that works for all Americans, not just the richest 2%. Donate $5 now so we can continue to fight for tax fairness for all.
Sincerely,
David Elliot
USAction / TrueMajority
1 - http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/numbers/displayatab.cfm?DocID=3090
2 - http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=3785
3 - http://bit.ly/QEy3dQ
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