Alice Benson, La Crosse County Democratic Party Communications Team
Very real and fundamental freedoms are at stake in the November mid-term elections, critical freedoms that are crucial to the bedrock of our democracy.
Watching the January 6 Committee, it’s clear that we cannot take our many freedoms for granted. Democrats are focused on protecting Americans’ rights and liberty and providing help and support for people’s everyday concerns.
While many Republicans, including those in Wisconsin, appear to be stuck in 2020, still railing against election fraud that doesn’t exist, making efforts to curtail voting rights, and spending taxpayer dollars on a dead-end investigation, Democrats are focused on developing policies and passing legislation that helps working families and protects everyone’s freedom.
Democrats brought you a tax cut for American Families with children aged 17 and younger through an expansion of the Child Tax Credit and another tax cut for workers under age 25 without children and those over age 65 through an expanded Earned Income Tax Credit. The majority of Republicans voted against those tax cuts for regular working people, instead pushing through tax cuts for the wealthiest of Americans.
Senator Ron Johnson pressed to pass a special tax break in the 2017 GOP tax bill that he, along with his largest donors, benefitted from. A study by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the top 1% of Americans by income received 60% of the tax savings from the tax provision passed by Republicans. Democrats cut taxes for the rest of us, not just the 1%.
Democrats are focused on helping working families, and in the House of Representatives, passed The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act which would authorize funds for Federal-aid highways. Republicans voted against this investment in job creation and infrastructure.
Democrats in the House of Representatives also passed The For the People Act which would expand voting rights, change campaign finance laws to reduce the influence of money in politics, and ban partisan gerrymandering. Republicans voted against protecting voting rights and are actively working, across the county, to suppress voting rights.
According to the Brennan Center for Justice, in 2022, Republican legislators in at least 27 states have introduced or carried over 250 bills focused on restricting voter access. Democrats continue to stand up for all Americans, striving to protect the right to vote.
Republicans voted against capping the price of insulin, an expensive and life-saving medication that too many people struggle to afford. With gas prices at an all-time high, Republicans voted against legislation that would protect consumers from the price-gouging of big corporations.
Over and over, Democrats are focused on delivering for the American people. Whether it’s jobs or tax cuts, lowering costs for working families, or protection for vital civil rights and freedoms, Democrats never forget who they are working for. Democrats are working for all of us and can be counted on to protect the average person from the Republican plans that will endanger our freedoms and weaken our democracy.