Enough is Enough, It’s Time to Pass Middle Class Tax Cuts
With a new White House report on the President’s middle class tax cut proposal, I am again calling for Congress to quickly extend tax cuts for 98 percent of all Americans. At the same time, House Republicans unveiled their tax plan for the top 2 percent, rejecting calls for tax fairness, strengthening the middle class or fiscal responsibility.
There is broad agreement that we need to extend tax cuts for the middle class, but instead of moving forward on tax cuts for 98 percent of Americans and 97 percent of small businesses, Republicans in Congress are choosing to hold these cuts hostage to deficit-busting tax breaks for the top 2 percent.
Congress is becoming increasingly partisan at a time when we should be working together to strengthen the middle class. We could be moving forward on the portions we agree on, but Republicans have a plan to give more tax breaks to those who need them least, while increasing taxes on 25 million American families and adding nearly $1 trillion to the deficit over ten years. Americans can simply not afford this.
It’s not fair that hard working Americans will have to pay the penalty for Congress not moving forward on middle class tax cuts. If the GOP continues to hold up middle class tax cuts, a typical middle-class family of four will see taxes go up by $2,200 on January 1st. This tax hike would affect 114 million Americans and 13.2 million in California alone according to the new White House study.
Today, I am calling on the Republican leadership in Congress to take swift action on the tax cuts for our middle class, working families and small businesses. Let’s get this done.
Congressman Bob Filner
Open Letter:
Bayfront Plan good to go
Crossroads II has been an active participant in planning for development of the Chula Vista bayfront for 10 years. As part of that effort we mailed petitions to all our members and asked you to collect signatures in support of Crossroads II’s position on bayfront development. These petitions called for preservation of the Marine Group Boat Works company, a larger active public park on the water, and reduced building densities. We were heartened by [the] response – we received 630 petition signatures that were submitted to the Coastal Commission on July 13, 2012. Because of [the] support, the Port and city have agreed to make fundamental changes to the Bayfront Plan. Here are some of the changes:
a) The Port has signed a lease extension with the Marine Group Boat Works. This lease extension assures that the Marine Group Boat Works, a Chula Vista company that has donated over $100,000 in resources to local schools and non-profits, purchases an average of $7.4 million in materials and services from local suppliers, and employs more than 130 people, will remain in Chula Vista for several decades in the future.
b) The amount of active, waterfront parkland will be increased to 20 acres, including an important vista point.
c) The 20 acres of active waterfront parkland will be connected across a marsh inlet to 21 acres of passive park to the north by a new bridge for use by pedestrians and bicycles only. (Vehicular traffic will use a separate bridge.)
d) 25,000 square feet of building space will be reserved for cultural uses (museums, performance spaces, etc.)
Did we get everything that we wanted? No, but the Crossroads II Board of Directors feels this is a reasonable compromise, and we hope you agree. Because of this agreement, Crossroads II is now on board with environmentalists and business groups in support of the Chula Vista Bayfront Master Plan, and will be communicating that to the California Coastal Commission next month. We could not have accomplished this without the active support of you, our members, so we are counting our blessings, and thanking you for your support.
David Danciu
President