If you have young children, don’t let them read this article. The secret is out. Folks, there is no Santa Claus for the U.S. economy. According to the new tax law, our Kris Kringle is China.  

This latest tax bill that came out of Washington is economically wrong. Instead of just providing tax relief to the small businesses and working families who were hardest hit by the recession, it gives unnecessary tax breaks to wealthy multi-millionaires who need them the least.  In fact, one third of the entire tax benefit package is going to the wealthiest three percent of Americans. These upper income tax breaks didn’t help the economy during the entire eight years of the last administration and they won’t now. We’re paying for tax relief for wealthy Wall Street bankers who won’t put the money back into the economy and won’t spur job creation.

It’s also fiscally irresponsible. It’s not a smart investment for western Wisconsin or the country. Without finding spending cuts in the federal budget to pay for tax breaks for the wealthy, Congress is playing Scrooge with our children and grandchildren’s future.  This “bipartisan compromise” by Congress ensures that they get what they want now without paying for it and without worrying about the long-term effect.  By selfishly borrowing another $1 trillion from China to pay for it, they’re recklessly adding to the deficit and carelessly creating unnecessary debt. Instead of leaving cookies for Santa this year, you might as well leave out the kids’ piggy banks.

Smart spending is essential to growing our economy. But this bill doesn’t cut it. Sacking future generations with a cost they cannot afford for a tax policy that has clearly failed, doesn’t help get our country moving again. Haven’t we borrowed enough already? It is essential that we get our deficits under control and this is not the way to do it.  Congress surely got what it wished for this holiday season, delivered by a country dressed in red.