Heartland Institute’s Jim Lakely: Urges Tax Cuts so Government Stops Punishing Companies

Heartland Institute’s Jim Lakely Urges Greater Corporate Tax Cuts so Government Stops Punishing Companies for Making Money

Joining “Neal Asbury’s Truth for America” for a repeat visit was James G Lakely, Communications Director for The Heartland Institute. Heartland’s mission is to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems.

Lakely weighed in on the Tucson shootings and reminded listeners that while the shootings were described as a “tragedy,” it should be recognized for what it was: murder.

“We need to keep the Tucson shootings in perspective. It was just about the act of one man, not a political group. This shouldn’t be about political gains. The shooter did not have a political agenda. Yet, while there was still blood on the street, people were trying to exploit the event,” said Lakely.

Turning to the 112th Congress, Lakely contends that the left believes that people on the right have mental problems and should not be trusted to run the country. They don’t understand the right or the Tea Party movement, according to Lakely.

Lakely is confident that the vote will occur in the House to repeal ObamaCare. It is important to bring this to a vote because ObamaCare is one reason that U.S. corporations are sitting on billions of dollars and aren’t hiring. They are uncertain what the program will cost and are keeping their money.

“When Obama introduced the healthcare bill he positioned it as a job creator. But it is a job killer. Just look at the number of large corporations that are trying to exempt themselves from ObamaCare provisions. Those with clout on Capitol Hill are engaging in crony capitalism,” said Lakely.

To fuel job creation the government needs to reduce the corporate tax rate. Lakely contends that companies don’t want to be punished for making money.

Lakely predicts that paralysis will take place on Capitol Hill for the next two years. Meanwhile, Congress has pushed the debt ceiling to $14.3 billion, a level that rose from $8 billion when Obama took office. This debt level makes the U.S. vulnerable internationally. In fact, China now owns 30-40 percent of this debt, which will have to be paid eventually.

“The federal government has to live within its means. This debt has put the business community in a psychological funk. They need to feel good about the direction the country is taking before they are in the mood to spend again,” said Lakely.

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