Politicians & Pundits: Donald Trump

Editorial Roundup: Release All The Records Edition!

Last week, while Congressional Republicans sided with banks and credit companies over their own constituents, and San Juan Mayor Cruz fought with Whitefish Energy, Donald Trump reiterated his support for Ed Gillespie, reversed his stance multiple times on 401(k)s, and tried to obstruct a teenager from obtaining an abortion.

 

Editorial boards across the country criticized Trump for his ACA sabotage, Trump’s Opioid epidemic response, echoed the criticisms of former Presidents and Republican Senators, and more. Here’s what Americans read this week in their local newspapers:

 

10/20

 

Burlington Free Press: For The President, It’s Donald Trump First

 

The real danger of Trump’s performance in office is that Americans become so numb to the president’s outrageous behavior that they are unable to recognize the erosion of democracy taking place in plain sight.

 

The president sucks the air out of the news cycle with erratic tweets, sudden position reversals and […]

Read more after the jump.

Tax Policy Center shows Trump’s tax plan will REDUCE economic growth, refuting White House

An updated analysis by the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center concludes that the tax plan being written behind closed doors by Donald Trump and congressional Republican leadership would, in the long term, shrink U.S. economic growth.

This refutes claims made by Trump and administration officials – including a new Council of Economic Advisers report out today – who have promised that their tax proposal would result in American GDP growth of between 3-5%.

“The capstone of Donald Trump’s economic agenda – a backwards tax plan that would overwhelmingly benefit the wealthy and large corporations while raising taxes on millions of middle class families – would in fact reduce U.S. economic growth,” said American Bridge spokesperson Andrew Bates. “Delivering economic gains for American workers and families needs to be the number one focus of any tax legislation, and by that test this proposal fails spectacularly.” 

Key paragraph​s​:

“President Trump and his top aides have argued that the Framework would […]

Read more after the jump.

Trump’s sabotage of Obamacare is driving premiums up by as much as 38%

This morning, a new report from the Kaiser Family Foundation determined that Donald Trump’s executive order cutting-off payment of Affordable Care Act (ACA) funding that helps keep out-of-pocket healthcare costs for working Americans low is driving up premiums on the ACA marketplaces by as much as 38%. This reinforces a similar report by the private healthcare analysis firm Avalere from earlier in the week, which found that Trump’s abrupt ending of these payments is raising premiums on the exchanges by 34% on average.

“Donald Trump promised to make healthcare cheaper, but his sabotage of the Affordable Care Act is exploding premiums by as much as 38%,” said American Bridge spokesperson Andrew Bates. “How much longer will Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress force families to bear the skyrocketing costs of their spiteful actions to wreck the law they failed to repeal?  Middle class Americans can’t afford the consequences of their behavior. It’s […]

Read more after the jump.

BREAKING: Companies not planning to create jobs with Trump’s corporate tax cuts

American Bridge spokesperson Andrew Bates released the following statement after a Reuters report found that U.S. companies are already planning to use the tax cuts in the proposal that Donald Trump and congressional Republicans are writing behind closed doors in order to benefit shareholders instead of create new jobs, as Trump has promised. 

“The tax plan that Donald Trump and Republicans are writing behind closed doors puts the middle class and American workers dead last. Their tax proposal is a giveaway to the wealthiest Americans and large corporations at the expense of everyone else, and now the rug has been pulled-out from underneath the disingenuous arguments being made by the White House.”

Reuters: CEOs suggest Trump tax cut may lift investors more than jobs
Mike Stone

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump is selling tax reform to Americans on the promise it will create extra income for companies to invest in […]

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WATCH: White House Inches Closer to Axing 401(k) Tax Benefits For Middle Class Families

American Bridge spokesperson Andrew Bates released the following statement after White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders appeared on Fox News and repeatedly failed to say whether Americans’ 401(k) tax benefits were negotiable or not.

“This is an alarming dodge from the White House on a simple question – is Donald Trump going to break his promise on 401(k) tax benefits that middle class families count on for retirement savings or not? The backwards tax plan that Trump and Republicans are developing behind closed doors would already raise taxes on millions of middle class familieswhile giving 80% of its breaks to the richest 1% of taxpayers.  This is not a game – Donald Trump and Sarah Huckabee Sanders need to come clean if they are planning to ax a key retirement planning tax deduction.”

On October 23, President Trump pledged to the American people that there would be […]

Read more after the jump.

Donald Trump Lied When He Promised To Combat The Opioid Crisis

Despite promising repeatedly over the past 77 days to declare the opioid crisis a national emergency, Donald Trump is again failing to deliver today. Declaring a national emergency would have made additional funding and resources available to the federal and state governments to fight the opioid crisis.  Instead, Trump is announcing a narrower set of bureaucratic changes with no additional funding.  

“More than  6,000 Americans  have died from opioid overdoses during the 77 days since Donald Trump pledged to declare the opioid epidemic a national emergency,” said American Bridge Vice President Shripal Shah.  “The President has made it to the golf course nearly every weekend during those 77 days, but hasn’t found time to deliver on his promise to mobilize resources at the state and federal level to prevent further deaths.  Ten months in, Trump’s administration is a disgraceful series of broken promises on nearly every topic.” 

This latest stall by the […]

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As Trump’s Tax Plan Threatens 401k Benefits, New Poll Shows GOP Tax Scheme Is Already Unpopular With Americans

A new AP-NORC poll shows the majority of Americans believe the tax plan Trump and Congressional Republicans are writing behind closed doors would help corporations and the wealthiest taxpayers over the middle class. The poll was released at the same time that House Ways & Means Chairman Kevin Brady, the top Republican in the House for tax policy, indicated the 401k tax benefits millions of middle class Americans count on may be jeopardized by Trump’s tax plan.

“Just like with the failed Trumpcare bills that would have cost millions their insurance, the American people are seeing through Trump’s lies about the Republican tax plan,” said American Bridge spokesperson Andrew Bates. “Trump’s proposal would sell-out middle class families and American workers as part of the real ‘lovefest’ that’s been going on since Donald Trump took office – between Republicans, their donors, and corporations.”

SHOT:

Washington Post, 10/25/2017: “House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin […]

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Sanders Questions: ‘Liddle Donnie Edition

Senator Bob Corker really hit the nail on the head this morning when he said of President Trump, “the debasement of our nation is what he’ll be most remembered for.” Is it too little, too late? Probably, especially considering the Republican just a few months ago was singing Trump’s praises as he angled for a job in his Cabinet.  But Corker’s honesty is nonetheless welcome at a time when virtually every other Republican in Washington can’t come to grips with the dangers that Trump presents for the country and the world.

As White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders takes the podium today it is important to remember the role that she, and all others in this White House and Congress, play in enabling this debasement of our country, our values, and our standing in the world.

American Bridge Rapid Response Director Emily Aden calls on Sanders to answer the following questions:

1. […]

Read more after the jump.

Five Events Michael Cohen Is Going To Have To Answer For

Donald Trump’s “pitbull” Michael Cohen is meeting with House and Senate Intelligence Committee investigators today and tomorrow behind closed doors about his central role in the Trump-Russia scandal. Cohen is perhaps the figure in Trump’s orbit who most represents the cross-section between the Trump Organization and the Trump campaign’s desire to get closer to Russia.

American Bridge Rapid Response Director Emily Aden stated, “From expanding Trump’s business in Russia during the campaign to drafting a secret plan to lift US sanctions on Russia after Trump won the election, Michael Cohen is at the crux of the Trump-Russia scandal. Congressional investigators–and Special Counsel Robert Mueller–have their work cut out for them.”

Here are five deeply disturbing events that congressional investigators will surely press Michael Cohen on in their meetings:

1. October 28, 2015: Michael Cohen had Donald Trump, already a presidential candidate, sign a Letter of Intent to build Trump Tower Moscow with Moscow-based developer I.C. Expert Investment Co.

2.  Read more after the jump.

Bridge Project responds to Trump Administration again siding with Wall Street lobbyists over American consumers

This morning, the Trump Administration’s Treasury Department issued a paper echoing deceptive talking points regularly used by Wall Street lobbyists and the banking industry in attacking common-sense efforts by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to protect Americans abused by big banks.  The CFPB is trying to the end the practice of “forced arbitration,” which denies millions of hardworking Americans access to their full legal rights after being defrauded.

American Bridge spokesperson Andrew Bates responded with the following statement:

“Nothing undermines ‘draining the swamp’ more than Donald Trump’s Treasury Department — run by a former Goldman Sachs executive — joining forces with Wall Street’s top lobbyists to fight the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s new effort to protect Americans from corrupt practices.  Just ask the 3.5 million Americans defrauded by Wells Fargo. Like Trump’s tax plan, this is about rigging the U.S. economy in favor of powerful interest groups and the wealthy against the American middle class. Trump is selling-out the […]

Read more after the jump.