Another act that didn’t help most citizens

The ‘Con’ writer in a Pro vs. Con issue on the ‘goodness’ of the $1.9 trillion stimulus package (E-R March 9) seems to have no real issues with the $1,400 stimulus checks, the $350 billion in aid to state and local governments and an extension of federal unemployment benefits.

He does, however, take exception to the other provisions of the package that he calls “billions of other dollars not going towards helping American citizens or businesses;” Republican ‘code speak’ describing these actual provisions: rental assistance and eviction moratorium, help for the hungry, more money for child care and child tax credits, a temporary increase of tax credits, subsidies for health insurance premiums, restoration of emergency paid leave, more assistance for small businesses, aid for states (already mentioned) and schools and increased support for vaccines and testing.

The writer also mentioned the cost/ benefit to the 125 million taxpayers, which conveniently sidesteps the reality that there are actually 326.7 million people in the United States that would benefit from this stimulus package.

These cost/ benefit criticisms are hypocritical when one looks back at the $1.5 trillion 2017 ‘ Tax Cuts and Jobs Act’, in which the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center predicted that nearly three- quarters of the savings from the tax overhaul would go to the top 20 percent of earners — those making more than $149,000. More than half the savings would go to the top 1 percent — people who earn more than $732,800. Billions of dollars not going to help regular American citizens.

— Mark S. Gailey, Chico