Last year, during the CT election campaign, Democrat Ned Lamont said that he favored reimposing tolls on CT highways. When that statement was picked up by the GOP candidate, Lamont denied that he favored tolls. Ultimately, he claimed that he would only approve tolls on out-of-state trucks. Of course, that was then, and now we have something completely different.
Now Governor Lamont is proposing putting tolls for all vehicles on every major road in the state. That is in combination with his plan to put sales tax on food and other basic items. In short, Lamont has gone back on his campaign promises and will be levying close to $2 billion in additional taxes across CT. He is also pushing for what he calls "sin taxes". That includes taxes on sugary drinks, plastic bags, e cigarettes and alcohol. Worse, Lamont says that the point of these "sin taxes" is to change behavior rather than to raise money. So having a Coke is now a "sin".
The media across CT is busy praising Lamont for realistically and bravely coming forward with these taxes. They say that instead of hiding behind his campaign rhetoric, Lamont is doing what is necessary for CT. It's astounding.
Think of the impact of these new taxes. Tolls hit everyone. The overwhelming bulk of these taxes will be paid by ordinary citizens of the state who have to use their cars to get back and forth to work or to shop or to take the kids to an event. Taxes on groceries also will hit the average citizen. For the wealthy, it will not make much of a difference, but for the poor or even lower middle income, it is just another big boost to the cost of living in CT. The same is true of the so called sin taxes. This will just be more costs piled on the average CT resident.
If the Republicans controlled the state government, a tax plan that raised two billion bucks off the back of the poor and middle income groups would be denounced as some sort of gift to the wealthy. No doubt it would also be called racist or anti-immigrant or something else like that. When the Democrats hit the poor and middle income like this, though, it is realistic and brave.
It is no surprise that Lamont and the Dems are piling more taxes on top of the already heavy burden in CT. It's also no surprise that the media is supporting the move in a less than honest manner. The sad thing, though, is that for the people of CT there is no relief in sight. Lamont has said and done nothing to reduce government spending since he took office. There is an easy half billion in annual state spending that could be eliminated if minimal effort was made to achieve that. And there's a lot more that could be eliminated as well. Sadly, that will not happen until CT finally gets rid of the Democrat lock on Hartford and the state government.
Now Governor Lamont is proposing putting tolls for all vehicles on every major road in the state. That is in combination with his plan to put sales tax on food and other basic items. In short, Lamont has gone back on his campaign promises and will be levying close to $2 billion in additional taxes across CT. He is also pushing for what he calls "sin taxes". That includes taxes on sugary drinks, plastic bags, e cigarettes and alcohol. Worse, Lamont says that the point of these "sin taxes" is to change behavior rather than to raise money. So having a Coke is now a "sin".
The media across CT is busy praising Lamont for realistically and bravely coming forward with these taxes. They say that instead of hiding behind his campaign rhetoric, Lamont is doing what is necessary for CT. It's astounding.
Think of the impact of these new taxes. Tolls hit everyone. The overwhelming bulk of these taxes will be paid by ordinary citizens of the state who have to use their cars to get back and forth to work or to shop or to take the kids to an event. Taxes on groceries also will hit the average citizen. For the wealthy, it will not make much of a difference, but for the poor or even lower middle income, it is just another big boost to the cost of living in CT. The same is true of the so called sin taxes. This will just be more costs piled on the average CT resident.
If the Republicans controlled the state government, a tax plan that raised two billion bucks off the back of the poor and middle income groups would be denounced as some sort of gift to the wealthy. No doubt it would also be called racist or anti-immigrant or something else like that. When the Democrats hit the poor and middle income like this, though, it is realistic and brave.
It is no surprise that Lamont and the Dems are piling more taxes on top of the already heavy burden in CT. It's also no surprise that the media is supporting the move in a less than honest manner. The sad thing, though, is that for the people of CT there is no relief in sight. Lamont has said and done nothing to reduce government spending since he took office. There is an easy half billion in annual state spending that could be eliminated if minimal effort was made to achieve that. And there's a lot more that could be eliminated as well. Sadly, that will not happen until CT finally gets rid of the Democrat lock on Hartford and the state government.
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