JAMESTOWN – Potential challengers to Congressman Tom Reed are attacking his support of the just passed Republican tax plan, with one prospective challenger calling it a Christmas gift to Reed’s donors.
Eddie Sundquist charged that the Republican tax plan is nothing more than a gift to donors, giving tax cuts to corporations and wealthy donors. Congressional Candidate Max Della Pia said the passage was a “complete deterioration of our legislative process”.
“Double-tax Tom and the GOP’s elimination of the State and Local Tax (SALT) deductions means that middle-class families will have to pay federal taxes on income that went to state and local governments, effectively a double tax,” Sundquist said in a released statement. “Additionally, the bill will cut Medicare up to $25 billion per year, as House Speaker Paul Ryan and Rep. Reed pave the way for additional cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security in 2018. This will devastate the 3.3 million New Yorkers who rely on Medicare, and the countless others who depend on Medicaid and Social Security for essential benefits.
Della Pia, in an issued statement, said the bill was hastily drafted in “dark rooms”.
“We have just witnessed a complete deterioration of our legislative process with the rushed–and even botched–passage of this tax bill. It was hastily drafted in dark rooms navigated only by lobbyists with a financial gain to be had. Let me be clear, our Representative Tom Reed championed this giveaway to corporations, and he is misleading us every step of the way, but we must not fall victim to his politically crafted, circumlocution,” Della Pia charged.
Reed will personally benefit from the tax plan through Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) he owns, Sundquist said.
“Representative Reed is a direct beneficiary of a newly added provision that gives a tax break to those who own LLCs, something that will personally benefit him,” Sundquist said. “Reed and his wife take income from two LLCs: R&R Properties, LLC, and R&R Resource Recovery, LLC – a medical collections business. As a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, Reed was directly involved in determining the provisions that ended up in the final bill.”
Sundquist said he is disappointed Reed would support a bill that “would do more harm to his constituents than good.”
“I still am committed to tax reform that will help lighten the burden on middle-class families, but this bill that was written behind closed doors only serves the wealthiest Americans,” Sundquist said.
Della Pia charged that Reed played on the hopes of constituents to throw them off the trail of the reality of the plan.
“To throw us off the trail of the true effects of this tax bill on our district, he plays with the emotions of the poor by telling them they may see a little extra money in their pocket at the end of the month. To those who are financially vulnerable, his promises are appetizing. When the truth is the corporate tax break is permanent, while the individual tax breaks sunset in 2025” Della Pia said. “In addition, the $10k cap remains in the bill, which disproportionately impacts payer-states like New York. Five out of the twelve Republicans who voted against the bill were from New York, but not Tom Reed.”
He went on to call Reed’s vote “immoral, cruel and accurately reflect his lack of empathy.” He called the bill a blank check for wealthiest Americans and “a stack of pennies for the poor.”