Scott Powers
The conservative fiscal policy organization Americans for Prosperity-Florida Monday urged Florida’s Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson to vote yes on the U.S. Senate’s Republican budget bill.
AFP-FL stressed that the bill contains a set of parameters for a tax reform package that could pass the U.S. Senate by a simple majority vote. The budget blueprint outlined Sept. 29 by the Senate Budget Committee calls for $1.5 trillion worth of tax cuts over the next decade.
“A vote against the budget is a vote to obstruct tax reform,” AFP-FL State Director Chris Hudson stated in a news release. “Tax reform will unrig the economy by making the tax code fairer and simpler, and stopping the politicians and well-connected from gaming the code for their personal benefit. If Senator Nelson is serious about helping middle-class Floridians, he should vote ‘Yes’ on the Senate Budget Resolution.”
On Monday the national Americans for Prosperity, a political advocacy group founded and heavily funded by David H. Koch and Charles Koch, sent a letter to Nelson and other senators urging them to vote yes on the Republican proposal.
AFP-FL also indicated it would begin airing an ad urging voters to urge Nelson to do so.
“We urge you to vote YES on the Senate Republican fiscal year 2018 budget resolution. Americans for Prosperity will include this vote in our congressional scorecard,” the letter opens.
“The Senate budget resolution includes many important reforms that would restore responsibility in our federal finances. It reins in federal non-defense discretionary spending by $632 billion, respects the overall discretionary spending caps established by the Budget Control Act, and includes many other provisions that would incite economic growth. Most notably, it provides a pathway for passing comprehensive, pro-growth tax reform,” the letter states. “The resolution includes reconciliation instructions that give the Senate Finance Committee the flexibility it needs to fix the broken tax code.
“Passing a budget resolution is the first step toward delivering a fairer, flatter, and simpler tax code that works better for everyday Americans,” the letter continues. “A vote against the budget resolution is effectively a vote against tax reform. A vote against the budget resolution is a vote for the status quo and the status quo is unacceptable. Conservatives in Washington should not miss this once-in-a-generation opportunity.”
