estate taxes

In today's (Dec 6) Stanly News and Press I read with disgust Larry Kissell latest betrayal of the progressive Democrats who worked hard to get him elected. Seems that Larry is disappointed that Congress didn't repeal the Estate Tax. Estate Tax? I just can't figure out why Kissell is supporting the repeal of the Estate Tax. Healthcare and TARP funds are a high profile issues, so I can understand his attempts to appease conservatives by voting against these issues. But outside of politically active conservatives and progressives and the very few people who the tax would impact, no voter in District 8 really cares about the estate tax. Nobody is going into the polls next election thinking, "Gee Congressman Kissell worked hard t o repeal the estate tax, I think I am going to vote for him". If Larry thinks that he is going to get the vote of the anti-tax conservative, he is fooling himself because they will never vote for a Democrat.

By not joining with other moderate to conservative Democratic Senators that voted for an amendmentment to cut estate taxes for the very rich, North Carolina Senator Kay Hagan was not on the list of ten Democratic Senators that voted to greatly cut estate taxes in the future. A $250 billion dollar amendment introduced by Senators Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) and Jon Kyl (Party of Greed-AZ) was passed today by a vote of 51-48 in the US Senate.

The ten Democratic Senators that voted for the amendment:

Baucus (D-MT), Bayh (D-IN), Cantwell (D-WA), Landrieu (D-LA), Lincoln (D-AR), Murray (D-WA), Nelson (D-FL), Nelson (D-NE), Pryor (D-AR), Tester (D-MT)

Way to go, Kay! I'm truly sorry this POS legislation was passed in order to make sure Sam Walton's progeny wouldn't have to send more of their inheritance to the money grubbing government, but I'm very happy that OUR Senator Hagan did not agree with this obvious mistake of an amendment.