Oxfam America Action Fund & CREDO Action – 2017-11-07 18:41:46
https://secure3.oxfamamerica.org/page/speakout/no-rewards-for-tax-dodgers
ACTION ALERT: War on the Poor No More: No Tax Bill Without an Investigation of Tax-cheating Rich
Oxfam America Action Fund /
No Tax Bill Influenced by Tax Cheats
Gina Cummings / Oxfam America Action Fund
(November 6, 2017) — A new set of 13.4 million leaked documents called the Paradise Papers has exposed the massive scale of tax dodging by corporations and some wealthy individuals — including some of the very same people negotiating the new tax bill currently before Congress.
The papers reveal that tax dodging has a huge human cost here in the US and in some of the poorest countries where Oxfam works. If corporations around the world paid their taxes, we could fund education for 124 million children.
Last week, the House of Representatives introduced a new tax bill that would give tax cuts to the same billionaires and corporations using tax havens to cheat the system. We are demanding an immediate investigation to put an end to tax dodging that hurts ordinary people — and especially the poorest among us.
Many poor countries struggle to provide even the most basic education, medicine and infrastructure to their people. And here in the US, millions of families are struggling to make ends meet.
Instead of real tax reform to close loopholes, the new tax bill gives the biggest tax dodgers a giant tax cut — while poor communities lose out on critical resources to invest in fighting back against poverty.
Speak up now and tell Congress to take a stand against the inequality that perpetuates poverty.
Speak up now to tell Congress that the rich and powerful have to play by the same rules as everyone else.
Take action now to oppose a tax bill that rewards tax dodgers and hurts people living in poverty.
Thank you for continuing to raise the voice of the people against a rigged system that entrenches inequality.
Gina Cummings is the Campaigns Director of Oxfam America Action Fund.
Wilbur Ross At Nexus Of Donald Trump’s
$60 Million Russian Property Deal
Rachel Maddow / MSNBC
(February 27, 2017) — With a line that runs through newly confirmed Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, Rachel Maddow connects the dots between a billionaire Russian oligarch and a Donald Trump deal worth tens of millions of dollars.
ACTION: Tell Congress: No Tax Legislation Without Paradise Papers Investigation
Murshed Zaheed / CREDO Action
Petition to Congress:
“Do not pass any tax-related legislation without first completing a full and public investigation into the offshore tax-dodging schemes revealed by the Paradise Papers, including financial ties between Trump Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and a Russian energy company linked to Vladimir Putin.”
(November 8, 2017) — One year after the Panama Papers revealed the tax dodging secrets of the ultra-wealthy, a new trove of documents called the “Paradise Papers” is making headlines across the world. (1)
Most shockingly, the papers reveal that Trump’s Commerce Secretary reportedly maintains financial ties to a Russian energy company with family ties to Vladimir Putin, despite claims to have divested such holdings. (2) The more than 13 million pages of documents detail how well-connected Wall Street bankers, hedge funds and international corporations all dodge paying their fair share and name more than a dozen close Trump associates. (3)
These papers make it clear: There is one tax code for the rich and powerful and another for the rest of us. Congress cannot in good conscience proceed with any tax legislation — like the massive Trump tax scam moving right now — until it has pored over every line of these papers.
The Paradise Papers name some of the most prominent members in the Trump circle, including Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, economic adviser Gary Cohn and recent appointee to a big bank regulatory post at the Federal Reserve Randal Quarles.
The documents also include corporations like Apple, Uber, and Nike; global political figures like the Queen of England; and major Trump backers like the Koch Brothers, Robert Mercer, and Sheldon Adelson. (4) (5)
But perhaps worst of all are the revelations that Trump Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has financial ties to Russian oligarchs and did not reveal that information before his confirmation. (6)
As Sen. Richard Blumenthal said this weekend:
“In concealing his interest in these shipping companies — and his ongoing financial relationship with Russian oligarchs — Secretary Ross misled me, the Senate Commerce Committee, and the American people.
Secretary Ross’ financial disclosures are like a Russian nesting doll, with blatant conflicts of interest carefully hidden within seemingly innocuous holding companies.” (7)
The Paradise Papers show how the super-rich hide their wealth offshore while the rest of us pay taxes. Yet despite these reports, Trump Republicans are plowing ahead with the Trump tax scam that would raise taxes on the poor and middle class while giving a tax handout to the already wealthy. We need to raise our voices and insist on a full and complete investigation of the tax-dodging revealed in the Paradise Papers before Congress even thinks about passing new tax legislation.
The Paradise Papers shine a spotlight on the lawyers, accountants and bankers who help the ultra-rich hide their income in offshore shell companies and avoid taxes.
At a time when Republicans try to reward their backers with corporate tax cuts and handouts for Wall Street billionaires, the papers are a shocking reminder that the tax system is already rigged against everyday people.
The release of the Paradise Papers puts Trump Republicans and the worst of the 1% on the defensive. We need to make sure they can’t brush the reports aside by pushing for an immediate, exhaustive and public congressional investigation — and make it clear to moderate Republicans and corporate Democrats that there should be no movement on tax legislation until such an investigation is complete.
ACTION — Tell Congress: No tax legislation without Paradise Papers investigation. Click here to sign the petition.
Murshed Zaheed is the Political Director at CREDO Action from Working Assets.
References:
1. Will Fitzgibbon et. al., “Offshore Trove Exposes Trump-Russia Links And Piggy Banks Of The Wealthiest 1 Percent,” International Consortium of Independent Journalists, Nov. 5, 2017.
2. Richard Engel and Aggelos Petropoulos, “Paradise Papers: Leaks Show Wilbur Ross Hid Ties to Putin Cronies,” NBC News, Nov. 5, 2017.
3. Sasha Chavkin and Spencer Woodman, “THE INFLUENCERS: Explore the offshore connections of 13 Trump advisers, donors and cabinet members,” International Consortium of Independent Journalists, Nov. 5, 2017.
4. Fitzgibbon et. al., “Offshore Trove Exposes Trump-Russia Links And Piggy Banks Of The Wealthiest 1 Percent.”
5. Chavkin and Woodman, “THE INFLUENCERS: Explore the offshore connections of 13 Trump advisers, donors and cabinet members.”
6. Engel and Petropoulos, “Paradise Papers: Leaks Show Wilbur Ross Hid Ties to Putin Cronies.”
7. Lois Nelson, “Wilbur Ross: Accusations that I failed to disclose Russia-linked investments are ‘evil,'” POLITICO, Nov. 6, 2017.
Posted in accordance with Title 17, Section 107, US Code, for noncommercial, educational purposes.
