Though tax cuts are not often met with resistance, opponents to Gov. Mitt Romney’s proposed tax cuts rallied on the Statehouse steps yesterday, arguing that taxes should be raised instead of cut.
Several dozen activists attended the rally, saying their goal was to stop the continuing budget cuts to education and other programs by increasing the state’s sales and income taxes.
‘We don’t want Romney slashing the budget in the name of streamlining,’ said Andrea Bolliger, one of the activists. ‘You have to first locate the problems, thus saving money, before lowering the budget. That way you know how much you can realistically cut. Romney wants to do it the other way around, cutting the budget to force changes.’
Bolliger said the governor’s approach was wrong because problems do not always exist, yet cuts are always necessary to accommodate lower funding levels. She also criticized what she called a blatant personal agenda from the Romney administration.
‘All of his plans unfairly favor big business,’ she said. ‘The governor always seems to have his own interests in mind. Removing political barriers for commerce is too clearly his primary objective.’
Romney’s budget plan includes a tax cut for large corporations and a deficit reduction plan that would squeeze a $550 million gap to just more than $100 million. Reducing the deficit would involve increases in real estate and trust taxes.
Activists said they hoped to gain support in the state legislature to block the Governor’s plan. They said the only ones who stand to gain from it were large companies, not the citizens of the commonwealth.
‘This is a nation and state by the people, for the people,’ Bolliger said. ‘We can run government like a business only until it begins to favor other businesses over its people.’
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