Republicans in the U.S. Senate like Joni Ernst and Chuck Grassley like to tout the tax cuts of 2017 as good government in action. We were told by Trump that they would be “rocket fuel for the economy” and Treasury Secretary Mnuchin claimed “The tax plan will pay for itself with economic growth.” Sadly, both were wrong.

The 2.3 trillion dollars in tax cuts over 10 years did no such thing. The rich and the corporations got richer but the vaunted tax cuts ended up on the national credit card, running up the debt. When Trump took office in January of 2017 the national debt was about 19.9 trillion. By the time he left office it stood at 27.7 trillion.

The theory was that the cuts would fuel a huge economic expansion with millions of jobs. Instead, corporations and the rich largely sat on the money leading to declining growth and decreased tax revenues. The GOP, once the party of fiscal conservatism, ran up the debt. Now Senators Ernst and Grassley squawk about the Democrats’ spending.

The Democrats, however, plan to pay for their spending by raising taxes on the wealthy and corporations by a few percentage points. It’s a matter of basic fairness. The rich use the roads, bridges, and services like plowed roads, safe food, safe drugs, etc. to make their millions. You and I pay for those.

Paying your fair share of taxes is the price of admission to participate in economic life as an American citizen. In the 50s, when Eisenhower built the interstate highway system, the top marginal tax rate was 91%. Today, Biden’s plan would raise the rate for those making over $400,000 from 37% to 39.6%. A small sacrifice to ask of those most fortunate. When Republicans talk tax cuts, grab your wallet.

Thomas Jacobson

Riverside, Iowa