FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                              

September 27, 2017

Contact: Sam Quigley

sam@patrioticmillionaires.org

202-446-0489

**Watch the Patriotic Millionaires Media Reel**

PATRIOTIC MILLIONAIRES ON "TRUMP'S TRICKLE DOWN" TAX PLAN:

"It's somewhere between indefensible and obscene."

"What kind of people see the devastation of Harvey, Irma, and Maria, watch Houston residents wading through the streets, and see Puerto Rico in total darkness

and think 'Wow, millionaires really need a tax cut?'"

Washington, DC – Today, the Patriotic Millionaires blasted the Trump Administration's just-released Tax Plan. The group, which includes hundreds of America's wealthiest citizens, released the following official statement:

“The Trump Tax Plan is nothing but a payoff to millionaires and multinational corporations. It is an embarrassment to history, common sense and decency that any elected official continues to perpetuate the total fraud of Trickle Down Economics. Time and again that epic lie has served as the justification for taking money that belongs to the American people and handing it over to a few thousand well-connected political donors. They pretend it is a philosophy. This is not a philosophy, this is a pay off.”

The group went on to make several specific points about some of the details of the tax framework:

– On the reduction of the top rate: “Lowering the top rate for America’s richest people in the face of already destabilizing inequality is irresponsible bordering on immoral.”

– On the repatriation of profits: “The Administration has decided to reward companies for essentially stealing American taxpayers’ money by hoarding it overseas. How is that good for the middle class?"

– On the reduction of the corporate tax rate: “Randall Stephenson, the chief executive of AT&T is wrong. The correlation between lower corporate tax rates and more jobs is not 'very, very tight,' it is nonexistent. From 2008-2015 the company paid an effective rate of 8%, they laid off 80,000 people, and Mr. Stephenson cashed in $124 million in stock options. Companies do not hire more people when you lower their tax rate, they overpay their already overpaid executives."

– On the elimination of the Estate tax: “We can’t wait to hear President Trump try to explain how a $4 billion tax cut for Ivanka and Tiffany helps the middle class.”

– On the elimination of the AMT: “The elimination of the Alternative Minimum Tax will virtually guarantee that thousands of Americas wealthiest people will pay no tax at all. How will be left holding the bill for that lost revenue? The middle class."

– On the territorial tax system: "President Trump's big plan to boost the middle class starts by helping multinational corporations avoid paying any taxes at all? That is absurd."

– On reducing the number of tax brackets: "If anything, we need more tax brackets. Someone making $5 million, $10 million, or $50 million a year should definitely pay higher taxes than someone making $400,000 a year. How can we even debate this?"

To schedule an interview or for further comment, please contact Sam Quigley at sam@patrioticmillionaires.org.

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About the Patriotic Millionaires

Proud “traitors to their class,” members of the Patriotic Millionaires are high-net worth Americans, business leaders, and investors who are united in their concern about the destabilizing concentration of wealth and power in America. The mission of The Patriotic Millionaires organization is to build a more stable, prosperous, and inclusive nation by promoting public policies based on the “first principles” of equal political representation, a guaranteed living wage for all working citizens, and a fair tax system. You can find out more at https://patrioticmillionaires.org/about/

The Patriotic Millionaires have appeared on hundreds of media outlets here and abroad, including The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, the PBS NewsHour, The New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, and many others. You can find more coverage at https://patrioticmillionaires.org/media

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