Let’s talk about what’s really costly to the average American taxpayer.
Last Thursday, the Senate again failed to pass legislation that would’ve extended long-term unemployment insurance for the 1.3 million Americans who were cut off from it back in December.
That number continues to grow in the direction of 2 million.
Fifty-nine Senators, including four Republicans, voted to extend unemployment insurance benefits, and so by a vote of 59-41, it should have passed the Senate because a clear majority voted for it.
But Republicans in the Senate chose to filibuster the extension of unemployment benefits, and so lacking 60 votes, the legislation came up short.
Many of these Republicans say that America can’t afford unemployment insurance.
They say this lifeline for millions of Americans is too expensive and too costly.
And they say that we’re Taxed Enough Already (TEA).
But unemployment insurance is not what’s really costing us money.
According to the White House’s 2012 Tax Receipt, an American who made $50,000 in 2012 only paid $22.88 in taxes towards unemployment insurance.
Similarly, an American who took home $50,000 in 2012 paid just $36.82 for federal food stamps benefits and just under $7 for additional welfare and government assistance programs.
So what should American taxpayers really be outraged about?
According to the White House’s 2012 Tax Receipt, an American who made $50,000 in 2012 paid nearly $248 in taxes for America’s military and defense programs.
And overall in 2012, the United States spent a whopping $689 billion on defense and military-related programs.
Just think how strong and well-funded the unemployment insurance program could be if we cut just a fraction of that defense spending and put it towards America’s social safety net.
But the amount of money Americans hand over to the defense industry each year pales in comparison to what they hand over in the form of corporate subsidies.
In 2012, the average American taxpayer making $50,000 per year paid a staggering $6,000 in taxes for corporate subsidies, over 174 times what they paid for unemployment insurance.
Of that $6,000, $870 goes to direct subsidies for corporations, including the likes of Exxon, Shell, BP and other Big Oil corporations that are polluting our planet and driving climate change.
Hundreds more go to corporations as indirect subsidies.
In fact, Researchers at the University of Illinois and University of California-Berkeley found that American taxpayers pay a staggering $243 billion each year in indirect subsidies to the fast food industry.
That’s because the fast food industry pays such low wages that We The People are forced to make up the $243 billion difference to pay for the healthcare and other public benefits of fast food workers.
Americans are also paying millions in indirect corporate subsidies to Wal-Mart, the nation’s largest employer.
America’s largest retailer makes nearly $35,000 in profit every minute, and as of 2012, the corporation’s annual sales were around $405 billion.
But those huge profits don’t trickle down to Wal-Mart employees, who on average take home just $9 per hour.
Those low wages, combined with very poor benefits, force many Wal-Mart employees to reach out to the government for assistance with healthcare, food and housing costs.
As result, a report released earlier this year by congressional Democrats found that Wal-Mart’s low wages and poor benefits cost American taxpayers between $900,000 and $1.75 million per store.
Despite what Republicans might try to tell you, the overwhelming majority of taxpayer funds are not going to social safety net programs like unemployment insurance or food stamps.
Instead they’re going to prop up multi-billion dollar corporations and an out-of-control military industrial complex that’s ballooning in size and power.
This is a simple matter of priorities.
If the average American has to pay $6,000 in taxes, should that money go to oil companies, defense contractors, and the low-wage retail and fast food industries?
Or should it go to fund a strong social safety net, including an extension of long-term unemployment benefits?
Helping Americans pick themselves up and get back on their feet is more important than forking over billions to corporations that don’t need it.
Help us Prepare for Trump’s Day One
Trump is busy getting ready for Day One of his presidency – but so is Truthout.
Trump has made it no secret that he is planning a demolition-style attack on both specific communities and democracy as a whole, beginning on his first day in office. With over 25 executive orders and directives queued up for January 20, he’s promised to “launch the largest deportation program in American history,” roll back anti-discrimination protections for transgender students, and implement a “drill, drill, drill” approach to ramp up oil and gas extraction.
Organizations like Truthout are also being threatened by legislation like HR 9495, the “nonprofit killer bill” that would allow the Treasury Secretary to declare any nonprofit a “terrorist-supporting organization” and strip its tax-exempt status without due process. Progressive media like Truthout that has courageously focused on reporting on Israel’s genocide in Gaza are in the bill’s crosshairs.
As journalists, we have a responsibility to look at hard realities and communicate them to you. We hope that you, like us, can use this information to prepare for what’s to come.
And if you feel uncertain about what to do in the face of a second Trump administration, we invite you to be an indispensable part of Truthout’s preparations.
In addition to covering the widespread onslaught of draconian policy, we’re shoring up our resources for what might come next for progressive media: bad-faith lawsuits from far-right ghouls, legislation that seeks to strip us of our ability to receive tax-deductible donations, and further throttling of our reach on social media platforms owned by Trump’s sycophants.
We’re preparing right now for Trump’s Day One: building a brave coalition of movement media; reaching out to the activists, academics, and thinkers we trust to shine a light on the inner workings of authoritarianism; and planning to use journalism as a tool to equip movements to protect the people, lands, and principles most vulnerable to Trump’s destruction.
We urgently need your help to prepare. As you know, our December fundraiser is our most important of the year and will determine the scale of work we’ll be able to do in 2025. We’ve set two goals: to raise $125,000 in one-time donations and to add 1400 new monthly donors by midnight on December 31.
Today, we’re asking all of our readers to start a monthly donation or make a one-time donation – as a commitment to stand with us on day one of Trump’s presidency, and every day after that, as we produce journalism that combats authoritarianism, censorship, injustice, and misinformation. You’re an essential part of our future – please join the movement by making a tax-deductible donation today.
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