Dems Slam Companies Prioritizing Exec Pay Over Taxes

A group of congressional Democrats and Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders have highlighted dozens of profitable US corporations that have paid their executives more than they’ve paid in federal income taxes, courtesy of defeated ex-president Donald Trump’s massive tax-cut package that the GOP is working to extend, Jake Johnson of Common Dreams wrote for Raw Story.

Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) in the Senate, and Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) in the House, led the letters to the 35 companies.

"In the first five years following the 2017 giveaway, 35 companies raked in $277 billion in domestic profits and paid their executives $9.5 billion—more than they paid in federal income taxes," the lawmakers noted in letters to each of the companies, citing recent research by the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) and Americans for Tax Fairness (ATF).

"Next year, Congress will decide what to do with these corporate giveaways. Republicans have promised to go even further if elected and cut the corporate income tax rate from 21% to 15%," the lawmakers continued.

"This additional tax giveaway would provide Fortune 100 corporations as a whole with another $50 billion each year, more than all current K-12 federal education spending."

“The windfall from the TCJA to big businesses, executives, and wealthy shareholders is unmistakable," the letter added.

Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) in the Senate, and Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) in the House, led the letters to the 35 companies, a list that includes high-profile names such as Netflix, Ford, and Tesla, whose CEO is the richest man in the world.

"Tesla is among the most dramatic examples of this phenomenon—big, profitable corporations that have actually been paying their top executives more than they pay the government in federal income taxes," the lawmakers wrote.

"According to an analysis by the IPS and ATF, in the period between 2018 and 2022, Tesla raked in $4.4 billion in profits and did not pay a single dollar in federal income tax."