Facts on Tax: Democratic Plan v. Republican Plan

The information contained here is not what I have written, but rather a compilation of some things.  I will identify the sources.

A lot of it is based on the analysis done by University of Pennsylvania's Penn Wharton Budget Model.

It is notable that in 2025, some tax cuts enacted in 2017 for low to middle income folks will expire.  Whoever takes the White House will decide whether to try to extend those tax cuts or let them die. Kamala Harris promises to reduce taxes for lower and middle earner and increase taxes for the wealthy. Harris says she would leave the 2017 tax cuts in place for people earning up to $400,000 per year but raise rates for those who earn more. This plan would increase the federal deficit by 1.2 trillion over 10 years.

Trump has promised tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations. He hopes to further reduce the corporate tax rate by 6%. The Penn Wharton Budget Model predicts that Trump's plan would increase the federal deficit by 5.8 trillion dollars over 10 years.

Trump has proposed tariffs on all imported goods at a rate of 10 to 20 percent. Generally, tariffs create increased prices on the goods that are being imported.  Hypothetically, over the long run it will encourage industry to make those goods in the US. Harris criticizes this tariff plan, describing them as a "tax" on these goods. The Peterson Institute for International Economics projects that the Trump's tariff proposals would cost the typical American household over $2,600 per year.

Considering the effect of tariffs, middle-class household with $80,000 in income would lose $900 after taxes under Trump’s plan and gain $2,200 under Harris’. A household in the top 0.1 percent, with $14 million in income, would gain $377,000 under Trump and lose $167,000 under Harris.

Both candidates support removing taxes on tips. 

Middle income voters will fare significantly better under the Harris tax plan.

Why I Support Joe Biden for President of the United States: Immigration

For many years, Congress has been unwilling to do its work in relation to immigration. Perhaps they think it is a better political football as long as they do nothing.

This month, Joe Biden has been trying to do what Congress failed to do. 

But, my background. . . I am the granddaughter of an immigrant. Here he is, Joe (Jan Josef) Ellstrom.

This is the boat on which he came to the United States, the S.S. Oceanic.

And this is the manifest that was recorded on Ellis Island when he arrived.

If you look closely, you will see that this was August of 1906, he was just 18, and all he had was $11.00 and a ticket to go to Altoona, PA, where his older brother had already come and established residence. 

Yes, I trust immigrants, for I come from immigrant stock. I know they are hard working and smart. I know they are not, as a whole, criminals, polygamists, or anarchists. (Check that manifest above.) I also know that, given the opportunity, those immigrants bring more to the United States than they take. 

This week, the candidate for president that I support, Joe Biden took executive action, because Republicans in Congress failed to act. Note, the Democratic party worked hard to build a bipartisan bill that could have been approved. I am quoting the "1440 Daily Digest."

President Joe Biden unveiled a new policy yesterday [June 18, 2024] granting a path to permanent residency for hundreds of thousands of immigrants without legal status in the US. The “parole in place” program applies to people with no criminal record who have lived in the US for at least 10 years and have been legally married to a US citizen as of June 17.

 

Those who qualify can live and work in the US for three years while they apply for citizenship. An estimated 500,000 spouses and 50,000 children, with a parent married to a US citizen, stand to meet the basic requirements—there are roughly 1.1 million immigrants in the US with citizen spouses. 

 

Announced on the 12th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, the policy also includes faster work permit approvals for DACA applicants and follows Biden’s recent executive action to reduce migrants at the US-Mexico border. Applications are expected to open by the end of summer.

I am pleased to  know that Joe Biden is working to build a strong citizenry by respecting immigrants, their spouses, and children. 

If you want to read more about another Executive Action designed to secure the southern border, read this fact sheet:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2024/06/04/fact-sheet-president-biden-announces-new-actions-to-secure-the-border/#:~:text=President%20Biden%20issued%20a%20proclamation,into%20the%20United%20States%20unlawfully.

This action was announced on June 4 after Congress failed to take action when Republicans voted against the bipartisan bill that they helped to draft.

I will be voting for Joe Biden in November.  I encourage you to do the same.

Another picture - my grandfather's oath of allegiance to the U.S. Constitution.

Yes, Trump is Guilty

 Friends,

I had hoped that the world would take a turn and truth would start to assert itself.

Unfortunately, it has not, on the political scene.  So I have decided that I should begin raising my voice in support of truth and sanity.

I am not interested in argument, but am very open to honest dialog, at least behind the scenes. I am glad to receive emailed comments also, in order to have open direct dialog.

This first post is titled, as you can see, Yes, Trump is Guilty.

************************************************

Guilt is more than a verdict.

If I watch a murder or a robbery, I am a witness to it. I know who is guilty because I have witnessed it.

On January 6, 2021, I was a witness to an insurrection. I watched it on television. I was planning to go to Kohl's for a shopping trip with my sister. We passed the television on our way out the door, and could not move. We watched all afternoon. We saw with out own eyes the attack on the Capitol Building. We saw a noose. We saw people attack the police and security.

It was mayhem. It was outrageous. It was traitorous. It was wrong.

We watched as the tv station replayed the exhortation of the man who was president at the time urged his supporters to march to the Capitol and to fight. That is what they did. 

The transcript from that speech is available here. https://www.npr.org/2021/02/10/966396848/read-trumps-jan-6-speech-a-key-part-of-impeachment-trial 

Because I saw this happen, I know that Trump is guilty of leading and participating in an insurrection. I don't need to wait for a verdict to be assured of his guilt. I am a witness.

There have been verdicts that underscore the facts and truths my eyes have seen. According to the Associated Press, "More than 1,230 people have been charged with federal crimes in the riot, ranging from misdemeanor offenses like trespassing to felonies like assaulting police officers and seditious conspiracy. Roughly 730 people have pleaded guilty to charges, while another roughly 170 have been convicted of at least one charge at a trial decided by a judge or a jury, according to an Associated Press database."

 Two defendants were acquitted.

Some of these folks were deliberately attempting to overthrow the government. Some were swept up in the emotion of the day and attempted to overthrow the government. They are guilty and are being punished.

I sat and watched the United States House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol (commonly referred to as the January 6th Committee), a bipartisan select committee of the U.S. House of Representatives, through hours and hours of testimony, primarily from Republican affiliated witnesses, as they methodically tracked down the facts about this event.

If you have not watched these testimonies, you must do so, to prove to yourselves that the guilt of Donald Trump is undeniable and indefensible. 

I have read much about this event. I have read much about the lies that Donald Trump has told about the 2020 election. I have heard no evidence that could possibly justify an insurrection. "After the 2020 United States presidential election, the campaign for incumbent President Donald Trump and others filed and lost 62 lawsuits contesting election processes, vote counting, and the vote certification process in 9 states (including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin) and the District of Columbia. Among the judges who dismissed the lawsuits were some appointed by Trump himself." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-election_lawsuits_related_to_the_2020_U.S._presidential_election

Have you heard evidence? Have you witnessed anything that is contrary to this. No. You may have heard lies by Donald Trump and his lackeys, but you haven't heard evidence because there is none.

As a friend or acquaintance, I beg you to never vote for Donald Trump. 

Betsy DeGeorge

2020 Elections - The Hook

Dear Voters,

Are you yawning yet about the 2020 elections.  Probably not.  You are either, like me, a little worked up, or you refuse to notice.

If you are worked up and want something to do, check out this page.  It is a spreadsheet that tells you which of more than 20 democratic candidates will be allowed to participate in the Democratic debates.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1dHSFg0jrAeIAqDlFZqAu-5N2x-wk8PT-6H4DbCendUM/edit#gid=1699107941

If you have a candidate you want to hear from on the debate stage, you may want to give them some money, if they haven't hit the magic "65,000 supporters" number. (That is a prerequisite for being considered a serious contender.) You don't have to give a lot.  Five bucks is enough.  I've given to four different candidates so far.

If you are still refusing to notice and need a hook to get your attention,

 listen to a few of the lesser knowns.  It is amazing how nice some of them are.  For example, there is Eric Swalwell, an Iowan whose parents are still amazed that one of their sons is not a Republican.

If you are a Republican who wants a choice, you have one.  His name is Bill Weld. This guy is an outside the box thinker and a man of principle. Supposedly, Bob Corker and John Kasich are still considering a run.

https://vimeo.com/330371574

Bill Weld

After you are hooked, there is lots that you can read to help you make up your mind about what is good for our democracy.


See you on the trail.

B

The Kavanaugh Thing #MeToo

I am astounded that there is a backlash about a woman coming forward to express her outrage that the man/boy who attacked her when she was a teenager should be nominated and unquestioningly approved to serve on the highest court of the United States.

I believe her, because her story is like mine in many ways.

She was young and innocent. I was young and innocent.  In my case you could use the word naive. I didn't think that someone, out of the blue, would push me down and try to sexually attack me. I didn't think that the mere act of studying for finals in a park that I had been to many times before would put me at risk.  I was 20.  She was younger than that and she couldn't imagine that a nondescript party would risk her well-being.

I was unprepared.  I couldn't imagine.  It was May in Philadelphia. I was wearing shorts and a shirt and tennis shoes. I don't remember the shorts and shirt very well, but I remember the shoes.  Good solid tie-on tennis shoes. I don't remember the year or date exactly, but I do remember clearly the books in my arms because I was studying for finals.  It would have been between the years of 1971 and 1974. The others at the party Christine attended have been able to allow that event to slip into their realm of forgetfulness.  Even the inebriated perpetrators have forgotten and could face a lie detector unafraid with confidence. Almost. But they won't because they fear that their souls remember.

I didn't wear a one-piece bathing suit under my clothes. Perhaps she remembered an admonition from an older girl. "If you go to a party where there are boys and beer, wear a bathing suit so they can't touch you." Christine didn't want to be touched, and she certainly didn't want to be attacked by two drunken boys who were stronger than she was. According to Kavanaugh's calendar, he lifted weights and played football all the time. The only thing that saved Christine from forcible rape was the bathing suit, and the beer that Kavanaugh still likes so very much. (And let's thank the guilt that a Catholic upbringing can bestow.  Perhaps that played a role in preserving Christine.)

I remember a broken bottle.  Christine remembers that she couldn't breathe when Kavanaugh's large hand was over her mouth. My attacker picked up a broken bottle from the ground.  I was on my back, where he had pushed me.  My books were scattered on the ground.  He said, "Stop fighting or I will hit you with this."  I said, "Swing away!" Maybe my attacker was Catholic too, because he threw the bottle aside and gave me the opportunity to kick him in the chin with my solid tennis shoe.

Then a miracle happened for Christine.  The second attacker jumped on the bed, unbalanced Kavanaugh, and she escaped.  My miracle was the arrival of two girls who saw that I was in trouble and called out.  My attacker ran. I stumbled down a hill to the girls, leaving my books behind.

Both Christine and I left our naivety behind us on those occasions, which we remember so well.

I did go to the police and make a report. I never heard from them again, after that day.  Would there be a report on file at the Philadelphia police station if I tried to find it now?

Republicans want to sully women who are attacked and then find it hard to tell the story according to the time schedule that Republican men feel it should be told. (Note: that is ANY time schedule that doesn't suit their partisan political purposes.)  Would Democrats follow the same course of action? I hope not, but in the past they have overlooked sexual abuses at the highest levels. The good news is that people can change and sex abusers can still do good things, but that doesn't mean they didn't commit sexual abuse.  And if they deny it, they are adding lies to their list of sins.

Republicans and Evangelical Christians in their turn have sold their souls for a strange pottage. I am astounded. I am a pro-life Democrat, so I know the little argument. "But he will vote to overturn Roe v. Wade." Can you hear how ridiculous that sounds? Will Kavanaugh allow a loophole to remain, "in the event of rape"?

Here is the truth.  If you want a healthy democracy, you don't elect or appoint or approve people who are profligate.  You don't elect or appoint or approve people who lie. You don't elect or appoint or approve people who can be bought and sold for personal gain.  That is not fake news.  That is the truth.

The Outsider Issue! What Ever Happened to the Middle Class?

Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump are almost exclusively concerned with one issue.  They have developed stands and talking points on many issues, and Bernie Sanders has a long history of insight and service to the government and the American people, but when allowed to talk in an unbridled manner, they both return to one issue and it is the same issue.

What ever happened to the American middle class?  That is it.

The main goal of Bernie Sanders’ decades-long career in politics has been to address the root causes of economic inequality because, as he has stated, “The middle class of this country, over the last forty years, has been disappearing.”

In order to address this, Bernie advocates policies that get at the root causes of these inequities. He calls for expanding the social safety net, creating more well-paying jobs, and reforming systems that perpetuate inequality such as our broken criminal justice system.

The super-rich and multinational corporations have not been paying their fair share in taxes. Bernie proposes removing tax loopholes and tax breaks that only benefit the rich and multinational corporations, as well as raising the rates for the wealthiest Americans. With a tax system reformed in these ways, the financial burden for expanded social safety net programs would be placed on those with extraordinary means.*

The main goal of the Donald Trump campaign is to lodge the blame for the loss of the middle class squarely upon the shoulders of immigrants who have come to the United States to purportedly steal the wealth of America's workers.

Trump believes that the influx of foreign workers holds down salaries, keeps unemployment high, and makes it difficult for poor and working class Americans to earn a middle class wage.*  So obviously, to Trump, it is the fault of underpaid bottom rung workers that the middle class is shrinking.  

That from a man in the upper one percent who brags that he doesn't pay taxes if he can "play" the system to avoid it. That from a man who uses his power and wealth to use eminent domain to seize private property from middle class and lower middle class people without the wherewithal to fight him in court. That from a man who employs 200,000 people and believes that “Having a low minimum wage is not a bad thing for this country,” he said.  

It is apparent to me that both Sanders and Trump are right about one thing.  The loss of the middle class is destructive to the health of this country.  Sanders is right about the cause. The middle class is shrinking because the upper 1% is greedy and has positioned themselves to destroy the middle class for the sake of their short term personal gain.

Trump is "playing" the American people, attempting to gain more power and wealth for himself and his corporations, pushing the blame that should fall upon him and those like him upon the poor and unentitled.  He is interested in serving only himself and certainly not the American middle class.

*From candidate's website

Books 2016

The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz