It was disappointing to learn that Sen. Cory Gardner and Rep. Scott Tipton voted in support of the major tax overhaul moving through Congress. Problems in this bill, evident to Colorado constituents, include:
A lack of fiscal responsibility – this bill will add more than $1 trillion (or millions of millions) to the federal deficit. Our children and grandchildren should not have to inherit the debt this short-sighted giveaway creates.A lack of regular order and transparency in the bill’s development, especially the absence of public hearings. Haste makes waste. Whatever happened to “Read the bill!”? The fact that multiple evaluations of this bill conclude that the tax breaks it provides to corporations and the wealthy far outweigh any breaks to the poor and middle class in America (many of which are only temporary). Without evidence that “trickle down” economics works, this bill is just a giveaway to the most privileged in our society. The tax bill’s rush through Congress means we don’t know the real toll it could have on our economy, our health and the environment. Good legislation should not be full of surprises and unknowns.
I truly hope that our senator and representative will see beyond their party’s selfish need for some kind of “success” in a long and fruitless year as the majority governing body in Congress and return to legislative practices that reflect integrity, truth and transparency.
Please represent your constituents properly and vote “no” on any future versions of this bill.
Tim Telep
Bayfield
