Remember when then Senator Ben Nelson got $100M in Medicaid funding for Nebraska in exchange for his ACA vote? And the GOP went nuts?
“Republicans also slammed the Nebraska deal, saying it was an example of Reid's secretive, backroom negotiation style that violated President Obama's call for transparency during the healthcare debate.”
Lol.
So clearly, now that Republicans have control, they won’t do the same thing right?
Right! Not to be outdone, they’ve gone right past kickbacks for states and to kickbacks for Senators themselves.
“The bill was nearly identical to the one Corker had voted against, except that it added even more money to the deficit — and included a special tax break for real-estate investors that would increase Bob Corker’s personal income by up to $1.2 million a year.”
Nice.
“As a microcosm for the GOP bill as a whole, you can’t do much better than a tax cut that was explicitly targeted at the owners of business that don’t create many jobs; has no economic justification...”
“...directly enriches GOP lawmakers and the president; and was quietly slipped into a 500-page bill without any public debate over its wisdom.”
But the #corkerkickback shouldn’t even surprise anyone. Senator Lindsey Graham, last month, said they needed to pass its tax cut bill because otherwise, the “financial contributions will stop.” On the record.
Rep. Chris Collins: “my donors are basically saying, ‘Get it done or don’t ever call me again.’”
Public servants, despite politicians bad reputations, are not all corrupt. Raising money for their campaigns is simply a requirement if they want to do public good and shape policy. It’s the system we’re in.
But this, this is something new. A tax bill, from a party that has spent thirty years decrying “waste, fraud and abuse” and closing loopholes, is going to transfer wealth from the public they serve, to themselves.
It is unequivocally self-enrichment, and corruption. In the United States. In 2017. Have you no shame Senator Corker? Senator Johnson?
