Washington, D.C. – Today Senate Republicans introduced a budget proposal that would protect every single tax loophole for the wealthy and well-connected while slashing funding for the programs that help the most vulnerable Rhode Islanders. U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Budget Committee, released the statement below regarding the proposal:
“The Republican budget proposal relies on accounting gimmicks to achieve balance within ten years, and calls for severe cuts that would dramatically harm Rhode Islanders. It would slash Medicaid and food stamps, and undermine the promise of Pell Grants for students. It would repeal provisions of the Affordable Care Act that have helped over 16 million Americans get affordable health care coverage, but apparently keep all the revenue to be raised by the Act. And it completely ignores corporate tax loopholes and giveaways for the wealthy that continue to cost us hundreds of billions of dollars. In short, Senate Republicans have produced an unreal document that ignores traditional accounting rules, continues to give the wealthy a total pass on contributing to deficit reduction, and harms lower-income families and retirees. I will fight hard to improve it.”
Earlier this year Senator Whitehouse introduced three “tax fairness” bills that could generate $300 billion over ten years by ending tax breaks and loopholes that benefit multi-national corporations and the highest earners. As the Budget Committee begins to debate the Republican budget proposal, Whitehouse plans to offer a number of amendments, including some that would help to balance the budget by addressing these tax loopholes.
You can also watch Whitehouse remarks at today’s Budget Committee meeting here. He concludes that, “The wealthier you are and the more you care about yourself over your neighbor and your country, the more you will like this budget.”
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