Letters and comments for July 29, 2011

Lost credibility

To the Editor:

On the front page of the July 24 Observer was an article about Congressman Walden’s talk at Max Square on July 23. I wasn’t there, but if the reporting on what he said was accurate, he told the audience that the United States has one of the world’s highest corporate tax rates, and that many firms avoid basing their operations in this country as a way to save money on taxes.

Neither of these statements ring true when you consider that companies like Exxon, Bank of America, General Electric, Chevron and Boeing paid no corporate taxes at all in 2010.

I call that a tax rate of 0.

This relates directly to the debate on the national debt. Republicans in Congress characterize closing tax loopholes as a “tax increase.”

With that stance, they lose credibility. There was a time when I voted for Republican candidates, but not anymore, if that’s the kind of spurious reasoning they use.

Richard T. Heinemann

La Grande

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