Misleader: "Fiscal Responsible " Bush has $50 B need met by $137 B Bill

[papau]

www.Misleader.org

BUSH MISLEADS ON FISCAL RESPONSIBILITIES

In a speech Monday, President Bush advocated fiscal responsibility in government, saying, "we need to be wise about how we spend your money."<1> He is now poised, however, to sign into law a massive, $137-billion tax giveaway to corporate and special interests.<2>

The tax bill was originally created to fix a $50-billion export subsidy that had triggered retaliatory tariffs by our trading partners. Instead of simply repealing the subsidy, Congress replaced it with a $77-billion giveaway to corporations, many of which never qualified for the original subsidy.<3> It
also provides $43 billion in tax breaks for companies operating overseas,<4> including a giant break to top corporations like Hewlett-Packard and Eli Lilly that allows them "to bring hundreds of billions of dollars in untaxed foreign profits back into the United States at about one-seventh of the
normal tax rate."<5>

Lawmakers larded down the bill with pork for their favored special interests. The bill included million-dollar tax cuts for fishing tackle box manufacturers, Chinese ceiling fan importers, horse and dog track gamblers and Native Alaskan whaling captains.<6>

Sources:

1. "President and General Tommy Franks's Remarks at a Victory 2004 Rally in Morrison, Colorado," The White House, 10/11/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=62395.
2. "Payback on K Street," Washington Post, 10/12/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=62396.
3. "Senate Passes Big Tax Breaks," Los Angeles Times, 10/12/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=62397.
4. "Congress Gives Away the Store," New York Times, 10/12/04,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=62398.
5. "Senate passes $137 billion cut in business tax," Baltimore Sun, 10/12/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=62399.
6. "Congress OKs corporate tax bill, hurricane disaster aid," Daily Herald, 10/12/04,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=62400.