From the Biden/Harris campaign:
Virginia Leaders Praise Joe Biden and Kamala Harris’ Approach to Rebuild America’s Middle Class
With 28 days until election day and in the midst of a historic pandemic that has put millions out of work, Virginians deserve leaders with plans to help our communities recover and rebuild America’s middle class. As ordinary Americans and working families slip deeper into poverty, Trump has given massive tax breaks to the most well-off in this country and has disregarded the needs of small business owners and workers in Virginia and across America:
- The number of small businesses open in Virginia has decreased by 20% and small business revenue in Virginia is down by more than 20% since January.
- Even before the pandemic, President Trump asked Congress to slash more than $200 million from programs that support Main Street.
- The Biden-Harris Administration will revitalize Main Street, including by leveraging $150 billion in new capital for small businesses.
- Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have called for an overhaul of the Paycheck Protection Program to guarantee every qualifying small business with 50 employees or fewer gets relief — helping small businesses manage through the pandemic. And they will address the rampant fraud and unjust enrichment that’s taken place under Trump’s watch.R
- After first trying to strip health care protections away from more than 3.5 million Virginians with pre-existing conditions, the Trump-Pence Administration spent time fighting for and passing a $1.5 trillion tax giveaway primarily for large corporations and the wealthy over hardworking Virginians.
- Tax experts estimate that over the long run, 83% of Trump’s tax giveaway will flow to the top 1% of earners in this country–those making more than $912,000 a year. Trump even snuck in a hidden middle-class tax hike that will kick in after he leaves office to pay for this permanent corporate tax giveaway — it will increase taxes by hundreds of dollars for hard-pressed working Virginians, while giving away an average of more than $7,000 to each taxpayer in the top 1% of Virgina earners.
- Under the Trump Administration the tax cuts for foreign investors were nearly five times larger than all Virginians combined.
- Biden won’t ask a single person making under $400,000 per year to pay a penny more in taxes. The Biden-Harris tax plan will enact more than one-dozen middle class tax cuts that will finally give working families the financial support they deserve.
- The Biden-Harris plan will make the super wealthy and corporations pay their fair share, to fund everything from infrastructure, education, and health care to improve our economy and society.
“Small businesses in Virginia are taking a big hit right now and the president isn’t providing the leadership to do something about it. Joe and Kamala’s plan to support small businesses addresses exactly how they’re going to make sure small businesses get the support they need,” said Delegate Rip Sullivan (Fairfax County). “Joe Biden and Kamala Harris understand that in order to build back better, we need to start with Main Street, the average American investors, small businesses, and our most vulnerable communities, and only then can we begin to get Virginia back on the right track.”
“There needs to be a lot more support for small businesses and the most vulnerable communities across the country,” said Derrick Kitts (Christiansburg). “Under Donald Trump’s failed leadership and botched coronavirus response, small businesses are struggling immensely and he’s over in Washington getting ready to dole out his newest tax break to the last people who need it right now. With the election right around the corner, Virginians need to know where the candidates stand on these issues, and it’s more than clear that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris’ small business and tax plans will aim to actually provide support to struggling small businesses and not raise taxes on anyone but the ultra-rich.”
“It doesn’t take a policy expert to see how damaging Donald Trump’s tax plan has been to ordinary Americans. The Trump Administration has focused on giving tax breaks to the country’s wealthiest people and corporations, and it’s disturbing how much they have forgotten about the American people,” said Deshundra Jefferson (Dumfries). “Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will make sure to prioritize Main Street over Wall Street. It’s the right plan for the crisis we are facing, it’s the right plan to tackle wealth inequality, and it’s the right plan for Virginians.”
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