Why should I pay my taxes?
To the Editor:
I want to let Sen. Tillis, Sen. Budd and Rep. Chuck Edwards know that it’s difficult to understand why Congress expects me to pay federal taxes.
You are certainly not doing the job you were elected to do — pass a budget, provide checks and balances on the executive branch, make decisions in the best interests of your constituents. Never mind, Mr. Tillis and Budd, your egregious performance in confirming cabinet secretaries.
DOGE continues to use a nuclear bomb rather than a scalpel to cut government spending, which is a reasonable goal. However, I have seen nothing that legitimizes DOGE, Musk or his decisions. Most of the “justification” makes me believe the president is acting illegally and gleefully. The cruelty of Trump and Musk to basically every US citizen is unbelievable. A total of 4,300 U.S. Forest Service employees were fired. Never mind that civil service employees cannot be fired without cause. Have you considered what these firings will do to the economy of our local communities that will bear not only the brunt of increased unemployment but also the loss of tourist dollars?
Destroying USAID is insane. Are you unaware that USAID bought its food, medicine and materials from U.S. farmers and suppliers? This administration has screwed not only the poor people worldwide but also U.S. citizens, many of whom thought they were voting for an administration that would improve their lives.
The consequences are monumental and the list is long: Musking around in Energy (which is responsible not only for clean energy, and energy efficiency but also safeguarding nuclear weapons), OSHA (which protects the workforce from job-related injuries), EPA (which ensures our rivers don’t catch fire and our air doesn’t give us asthma), Interior (which fights forest fires), NIH and CDC (which fund cancer research and develop vaccines to protect our health), the CFPB (which protects innocent borrowers from getting fleeced by banks and loan companies) and on and on, ensures we will be less safe, less healthy and less economically secure. Every aspect of American life is being degraded by Trump and Musk.
Related Items
GOP silence is frightening
DOGE and Trump are uncovering fraud
This is not how to run a business
NCDA&CS offers free agronomic services for WNC growers
Meanwhile, Congress is working to make life for the least of us much harder, slashing budgets for SNAP, Head Start, Medicaid and more. And to what end? To fund that $4 trillion tax break Trump promised his billionaire buddies. I bet many of your constituents do not know that Mr. Musk has more than $22 billion in government contracts. So far, none of his contracts have been cut and the several regulatory investigations against his business practices have been cancelled by DOJ.
So, Congress, have you really thought through the consequences of this administration, not only to the underserved and to me, but to your safety and well-being when your electorate realizes their government has betrayed them mightily?
It costs $6.5 billion annually to fund Congress. Give me one reason I should continue to pay your salary.
Karen Patterson
Highlands
