Senator thanked for gun bill support
I extend my thanks to Sen. Bob Corker for his Nov. 19 meeting with local clergy, including my pastor, the Rev. Scott Williamson, about gun safety.
The clergy urged his support of the recent legislation introduced by Republican Sens. John Cornyn and Tim Scott and Democratic Sens. Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal that would:
» Require states and agencies to produce plans for sending records to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS);
» Allow NICS to report if an individual is prohibited from buying a gun and verifying that the information is accurate;
» Incentivize agencies and states to provide information by blocking bonus pay for political appointees in agencies that fail to upload records to the background check system and reward states that follow their implementation plans to create a “domestic abuse and violence prevention initiative” aimed at making sure states have the ability and incentive to share information with the NICS such as a felon or someone convicted of domestic violence.
I encourage everyone to contact Sen. Corker (202-224-3344 or 423-756-2757) to thank him for co-sponsoring this legislation.
Kate Stulce, Ooltewah
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Tax bill relies on D.C. doublespeak
I watched Sen. Corker’s tap dance on the tax bill when he was on CNBC.
Becky Quick immediately jumped to the big flaw in his argument. He wanted a provision that said if the economy did not perform as advertised, the corporate tax break would go away and taxes would go up.
What he barely got out after Quick’s question on taxes going up on individuals was that it would go up on everybody. So the big reason for the tax bill is for corporations to do better so we all do better, but if they fail, all suffer with increased taxes instead of just the corporations that failed to do their part.
Why do the individual tax breaks go away in five years? Why do the big millionaires get the breaks permanently? Why is this claimed to be a middle-class tax cut?
Ed Love
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Corker playing to his own kind
About a recent news article on Sen. Corker being the fourth wealthiest member of the Senate ($69 million):
An earlier Free Press editorial by Clint Cooper about the senator was titled “Pragmatic Leadership.” I didn’t see it that way. I may have said, “Ultra rich senator doing his best to keep down the wages of the average American worker,” or “I got it, you ain’t getting any of it!”
Cooper also wrote that at the beginning of the Great Recession, the senator opposed the bailout of Chrysler and GM unless they cut labor costs. What Corker really meant was that automakers needed to invalidate fairly negotiated union contracts. In tough times, “sock it” to the worker. Not cut all costs, just labor costs.
Then, the senator led the charge to halt the possible unionization of VW by convincing workers unions would be bad for them.
Logic tells me in spite of what Corker and his cronies in the Congress say, unions are good for workers. Without unions labor has no one to fight for them for better wages and benefits.
No wonder wages are stagnant, pensions nearly nonexistent and health care under duress with politicians like Corker.
Fred Kuhn, Signal Mountain