Patty Murray: “with their latest tax plan, Republicans are showing once again that they care more about giving tax breaks to…”

“with their latest tax plan, Republicans are showing once again that they care more about giving tax breaks to millionaires than helping working families. Republicans said this week would be health care week. While it is insulting to devote only 1 week to such a critical issue, it's even more troubling that Republicans pulled the plug on health care week in favor of even more tax breaks for the rich. This tax bill and the Senate's failure to help families with the soaring cost of health care are further proof that Republicans have the wrong priorities. If we want to make America strong again, we need to invest here at home. Today middle-class families throughout Washington State and the country are struggling to pay for the skyrocketing costs of gas, college tuition, and health care. Instead of helping these hardworking families, Republicans have once again decided to leave the middle class behind. While I am pleased that this bill includes a 1-year patch for the alternative minimum tax, there is not much else to be pleased about in this bill. According to the Tax Policy Center, this tax bill would provide middle income families an average tax cut of just $20, while millionaires would get an average tax cut of $42,000. Rather than extending the middle-class tax cuts that have already expired or will expire at the end of the year, Republicans have again turned their backs on the middle class.…”