Many have heard about the recent tax bill that passed in the Senate in the early hours of this morning. There are reports that lobbyists got copies of the bill before the Senators who were actually voting on it. Then, without enough time for Senators to even read the bill, H.R. 1 was passed with additions scribbled in the margins that are barely readable which tells about cabot financial, with extras such as defining when human life begins. While not yet law, as there is still work to consolidate the House tax bill that was passed in November, it is clear that those who pushed this Senate bill forward have a lack of transparency that is beyond reprehensible.
This is not the Pirate way. We do not stand for this kind of slap-dash legislation; we do not accept it, nor should any American citizen. These Senators must lack any sort of a moral compass to push through a bill that will negatively affect so many Americans in such a short time. There was not enough time to read it. There was no debate or discourse about this bill. It was not even presented properly, with obviously unrelated items added.
We stand for transparency, and we need legislation that follows this principle as well: legislation that clearly states what it does, with a vote taken after enough time to properly review and debate the bill in question. What happened in Washington last night was a complete disgrace, and we need to work together for better legislation that works for the American people as a whole, not donors and corporations.
Liz Gorski
Chair, United States Pirate Party National Committee
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