Florida Democratic Party Chair Terrie Rizzo released the following statement in response to Donald Trump’s first state of the union speech:
“The only thing this President has done during his first year in office is increase taxes on Florida’s working families to pay for tax cuts for the very wealthy while continuing his hateful rhetoric against women, immigrants, and people of color. Tonight’s SOTU indicates more of the same. While Democrats work to create opportunity, an economy, and a country that works for all Americans, Trump and Republicans have made it clear that they’ll continue to reward the wealthy at the expense of hard-working Americans.”
Examples of how Trump’s Economy is hurting the hard-working Americans:
Axios: Seniors’ out-of-pocket medical costs are rising. “Health care is eating up more and more of everyone’s income — but that’s an especially difficult burden for seniors, who often live on fixed incomes.”
See also: New York Times: Individual Mandate Now Gone, G.O.P. Targets the One for Employers; Axios: Stat du jour: Uninsured rose in 2017; Associated Press: Study says Trump moves trigger health premium jumps for 2018; Kaiser Family Foundation: Cassidy-Graham-Heller Would Allow Insurers To Charge Older Americans Up To 5 Times More; The Nevada Independent:Cassidy-Graham-Heller Would “Increase Out Of Pocket Costs…Weaken Protections For People With Pre-Existing Conditions.;” Kaiser Family Foundation: ACA Silver Plan Premium Increases from 7% to 38% Attributed to End of Cost-Sharing Payments.
Market Watch: Wal-Mart has announced thousands of layoffs since publicizing bonuses and benefits expansion. “Wal-Mart WMT, -1.81% confirmed about 1,000 layoffs in California on Monday, including 650 associates in Sam’s Club locations in Los Angeles, Sacramento and Orange County, and 359 at a Wal-Mart location in Sacramento…Last week, the company cut as many as 500 workers in the corporate headquarters in Bentonville, Ark…Wal-Mart would cut about 10,000 jobs as a result of 63 Sam’s Club store closures. About a dozen of the locations will be converted to fulfillment centers, with the first to open in Memphis.”
CNBC: Most of the tax cut windfall will boost buybacks and dividends, not workers’ pockets, survey predicts. “Asked to parse out how companies will use the windfall from the tax gains, most respondents didn’t see much going to workers.”
USA Today: Harley-Davidson closing Kansas City plant. “The earnings drop came in part because of a charge associated with President Trump’s tax cut.”
