Letter: Who represents the working class?

With shots called by their donor base, Republicans have given wealthy Americans a Christmas gift of epic proportions.

Let's be clear: this tax bill effectively transfers $2 trillion in wealth to the top 1 percent and corporations. Those corporations are sitting on $2 trillion in cash and most will use this windfall for stock buybacks and mergers (layoffs) and not 'job creation.” Who will make up the shortfall, one might ask? Well, $1 trillion will come from increased taxes on the middle class and the other trillion will be added to the national debt.

The concentration of wealth by the few should be of great concern to all Americans. The situation today is much like 1929. It's not envy of the wealthy, it's simple economics. Our consumer-driven economy depends upon a robust middle class. Rather than cutting taxes for the wealthy, money could be spent on infrastructure which would immediately create jobs and benefit the working class rather than those who simply inherit wealth, collect dividends, or manage hedge-funds. This administration said it would 'drain the swamp” but instead has surrounded itself with billionaires and self-dealers.

Meanwhile, our president says, 'this tax bill is going to hurt me ... believe me!” Anyone who believes that nonsense probably graduated from the Moscow branch of Trump University and still is waiting for the 'trickle down” from Bush's tax cuts. Next on the Republican agenda is gutting Medicare and Social Security to pay for tax cuts for the donor class. The 2018 election can't come soon enough.

Rande Lehmkuhl

Marion