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About the Ryan budget plan

 

Editor, Index-Tribune:

 

The Paul Ryan Republican budget plan that recently passed the house was just defeated in the Senate. It would have given trillions of dollars in tax cuts to millionaires and billionaires, financed by those who could least afford it.

Part of the plan, a subsidized program for the private insurance industry, would have replaced Medicare with a $15,000 voucher. If your medical bills exceed that amount, you would need to make up the difference with your own personal savings.

Further, the plan reduced the 35 percent tax bracket to a 25 percent tax bracket. This means those earning $379,000 a year or more would be the only ones getting a tax break. Under the plan, the government would collect $4.2 trillion less from the richest 1.5 percent, giving the government a $4.2 trillion shortfall.

This reduction in revenue would be made up by you and me, probably by eliminating middle class perks such as mortgage interest deductions and charitable contributions.

I wish to thank all of the Democratic senators, and the five Republican senators, who had the common sense to vote against this disaster of a budget bill.

Tom Sokolowski

Sonoma

Sonoma Valley

Democratic Club