Reps. Davis, LaHood praise passage of GOP tax plan

Darin LaHood and Rodney Davis
U.S. Reps. Darin LaHood (left) and Rodney Davis both voted for the tax reform plan which passed the House on Thursday. (Photo by Eric Stock/WJBC)

By Eric Stock and Illinois Radio Network

WASHINGTON – Illinois congressmen split along party lines in the U.S. House on the GOP’s tax reform plan.

Supporting the plan, Republican Rodney Davis of Taylorville said the measure is pro-middle class and pro-business and will help the economy grow.

“Today, is not about politics or the legacy of Republicans and Democrats,” Davis said in a statement. “It’s about middle-class Americans who have not seen a tax break in more than 30 years, small businesses who continue to be taxed at a much higher rate than large businesses, and it’s about bringing back jobs and investments by corporations who have left this country because we have the highest corporate tax rate in the industrialized world.”

U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood of Peoria said for Illinois’ 18th district, a Congressional analysis found that a family of four making the median household income would receive a tax cut of $2,060 every year.

“Today’s vote is a big win for the middle class families of Illinois’ 18th district,” LaHood said in a statement. “For the past thirty years, they have seen our tax code get bigger while their paychecks got smaller.”

Voting “no,” Democrat Bill Foster said the plan would hurt Illinoisans wanting to deduct high property taxes.

Democratic U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth are urging Gov. Bruce Rauner to publicly weigh in on the tax plans and how these plans would impact Illinois families.

“This House bill gives guaranteed tax giveaways to the wealthy and temporary tax relief to some middle-income families,” Durbin said in a statement. “One-third of Illinois families will face double taxation for their property, income, and sales taxes for the first time. Rushing through their partisan bill is a guarantee mistakes will be included, which hurt many hard-working families in Illinois.”

Durbin and Duckworth say a letter they sent to the governor a month ago has gone unanswered.

Eric Stock can be reached at [email protected].

Blogs

Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all

By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year.  It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …

Is federal mobilization the answer?

By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city.   Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…

In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans

By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…

Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life

Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University.   We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk.  Going to work every day for some people means…