Dec. 7, 2017, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging the House and Senate conference committee on the tax cut bill to include specific provisions cutting everyone’s taxes, making tax relief permanent, incentivizing repatriation in year-one and closing the foreign reinsurance tax loophole:

“Now that the House and Senate have passed their tax cut bills, now comes the time to iron out the differences between the two. This process of course provides a crucial opportunity to improve the bill, which considering how often tax bills like this come up, might actually be the last opportunity to cut taxes for the next decade or so.

“We urge conferees to include a Senate provision that closes the foreign reinsurance tax loophole, which favors foreign insurers over domestic ones. There should be tax equity here.

“Foreign repatriation should be incentivized to occur in year-one, so that the economy gets maximum stimulus right away from foreign earnings coming back home all at once, creating a virtuous investment boom in U.S. businesses immediately. The sooner the better.

“Finally, House and Senate conferees should focus carefully on crafting a compromise that cuts every individual’s taxes. Nobody should be left guessing how the tax plan will affect their taxes. It should be unequivocal that everyone’s taxes are getting cut, and cut permanently. The conference should include the House provision that makes the tax relief permanent. Both plans include permanent corporate and business tax relief, which is good, but that must apply to the individual side as well. We shouldn’t be creating another fiscal cliff in 2025 or any other year. If spending must be cut in order to get an appropriate budget score to cut everyone’s taxes and to eliminate any sunsets, then cut spending.

“Just including President Trump’s plan to reorganize the non-defense federal bureaucracy could save $1.5 trillion over ten years, with those saving applied to the tax bill. A skinny Obamacare repeal could save another $280 billion. And so forth. For conferees, all options need to be on the table to ensure that the tax relief that is provided today applies to everyone, and will not sunset at a later date.”

Attachments:

“Poll: 42 percent of voters think their taxes go up under GOP tax plan, even though they don’t. Here’s why.” By Robert Romano, Dec. 7, 2017 at http://netrightdaily.com/2017/12/poll-42-percent-voters-think-taxes-go-gop-tax-plan-even-though-dont-heres/

“The GOP tax bill is better than you think, but it still might result in a ‘Read my lips’ moment,” By Robert Romano, Nov. 27, 2017 at http://netrightdaily.com/2017/11/the-gop-tax-bill-better-think-still-might-result-read-lips-moment/

“Trump, GOP tax cuts in time for Christmas,” By Robert Romano, Dec. 4, 2017 at http://netrightdaily.com/2017/12/trump-gop-tax-cuts-time-christmas/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 100 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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Dec. 6, 2017, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today accepted an Impact Award from the non-profit United in Purpose, and issued the following statement:

“It is truly an honor to be recognized with this all-star cast in the conservative limited government movement. Slowly, but surely, the center of gravity is beginning to shift out from under the administrative state, and while every small victory comes with multiple bumps and bruises, because of the people honored today, the principles outlined in the Declaration of Independence that all are created equal, endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, are starting to resonate again.  We have a long way to go, but each journey gets completed one step at a time.  I am proud to be working alongside many of these honorees as a small cog in the fight to restore liberty in America.”

For more information: http://impactawardsevent.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/UIP_Letterhead-120517.pdf and http://impactawardsevent.com

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 100 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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Dec. 4, 2017, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement echoing Trump attorney John Dowd’s statement that the “President cannot obstruct justice because he is the chief law enforcement officer under [the Constitution’s Article II] and has every right to express his view of any case”:

“The President is the chief officer of the Executive Branch, whose duty under Article II of the Constitution is to implement and enforce the law. He is only officer in the Constitution that has this job. Not the Attorney General. Not the FBI. Not the Justice Department. The President can lead investigations, order investigations and stop investigations, just like any prosecutor with discretion. To deny that, is to deny the very nature of executive power.

“Given that former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn pled guilty to lying to the FBI about lawful activities and nothing else, it is reasonable for the President to have said that Flynn really didn’t do anything wrong. Robert Mueller himself exercised the same discretion when he accepted Flynn’s plea deal. James Comey himself exercised far broader prosecutorial discretion when he whitewashed Hillary Clinton’s email server scandal by declaring it not to be a crime.

“I find it incredible that those who conferred on former President Obama nearly unlimited executive powers seek to undermine the exercising of even the most basic constitutional authority by President Trump. This partisan approach to constitutional governance and the powers delineated therein is dangerous.

“The greatest danger to representative government is an unaccountable administrative state operating outside of presidential and Congressional purview. It is time to rein in this witch hunt, which calls into question the amount of discretion that has been put into the hands of unelected officials.”

Attachments:

“No obstruction of justice by Trump in Comey testimony,” By Robert Romano, June 8, 2017 at http://netrightdaily.com/2017/06/no-obstruction-justice-trump-comey-testimony/

“Flynn had no reason to lie about speaking to the Russian ambassador,” Statement by Rick Manning, Dec. 1, 2017 at https://getliberty.org/2017/12/flynn-had-no-reason-to-lie-about-speaking-to-the-russian-ambassador/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 100 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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Dec. 1, 2017, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement in response to former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn’s guilty plea to lying to federal investigators about his conversations with the Russian Ambassador, Sergey Kislyak in Dec. 2016:

“It would have been irresponsible for then-incoming National Security Advisor Michael Flynn not to have spoken in Dec. 2016 with the Russian ambassador about sanctions and other urgent matters between the U.S. and Russia. At that point, both Russian and U.S. air forces were both patrolling the war zone in Syria, a potential flashpoint for conflict and war. In the campaign, Hillary Clinton had advocated in favor of enforcing a no-fly zone in Syria enforced by the U.S., risking open war with Russia.

“The Trump transition, after the election was won, had a duty to engage with Russia and to gauge their response to sanctions and more broadly the posture the U.S. was taking, and if the net result is there was no further escalation by Russia in response, they did everyone a favor and potentially averted a wider conflict or even a war.

“The incoming president after an election and his transition team have every right and it is expected that they make contact with foreign governments in preparation of putting the administration’s foreign policy into place. This leads to a smooth transition, protects national security and keeps the American people safe by sending clear signals to foreign powers about the intentions of the incoming president.

“The bottom line is Flynn should never have lied to the then-Vice President Elect and then to federal investigators about something that was well within the scope of his duties. Flynn had not only not done anything wrong by talking with the Russians, he may in fact have diffused a potential escalation and war between the world’s top nuclear powers. That was something to be proud of, not to hide.”

Attachments:

“Attorney General Jeff Sessions has responsibility to get to the bottom of the Michael Flynn unmasking leak,” By Robert Romano, Aug. 14, 2017 at http://netrightdaily.com/2017/08/attorney-general-jeff-sessions-has-responsibility-to-get-to-the-bottom-of-the-michael-flynn-unmasking-leak/

“Flynn first victim of Obama’s Russia witch hunt against Trump,” By Robert Romano, Feb. 15, 2017 at http://netrightdaily.com/2017/02/flynn-first-victim-obamas-russia-witch-hunt-trump/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 100 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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Dec. 1, 2017, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging the Senate to reject any attempts to add any tax increases to the Senate tax cut bill:

“Americans for Limited Government supports a tax cut bill, as reflected in our endorsement of the Senate bill yesterday. Should the latest iteration of the Senate bill wind up having anything resembling an automatic tax increase or sunset of tax cuts, we urge the Senate to vote no. If faux deficit hawks seek automatic tax increases on the American people rather than real spending cuts to lower the deficit, they completely miss the mark with their objections.

“A government spending bill will be considered between now and Christmas, and that is another opportunity to visit cutting spending in a meaningful way. I will be intrigued to see if Sens. Corker and Flake are as concerned about the deficit when it comes to cutting bloated government as opposed to using the deficit issue to sabotage the tax cut bill.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 100 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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Nov. 30, 2017, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement in support of the Senate tax cut plan provision preventing tax avoidance through reinsurance by foreign insurers:

“The Senate tax reform bill closes a loophole that allows foreign insurance companies to avoid paying certain U.S. taxes, that will finally bring tax equity between domestic and foreign insurers. Americans for Limited Government has joined a coalition in favor of the Senate tax plan provision that does away with this loophole and urges members to continue to support the provision. It is time this complex offshore scheme, called affiliate reinsurance, wherein profits are transferred to a tax haven, and then reinsurance is purchased from the affiliate, finally comes to an end.”

Attachments:

Letter to the Senate, Nov. 29, 2017 at http://capallies.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Congress-Must-Undo-Crony-Insurance-Tax-Loophole_Coalition-Letter.pdf

Conservative Coalition Supports Senate Effort to Close “Bermuda Tax Triangle” Loophole and Protect American Jobs Washington D.C.

On behalf of the following free-market groups and organizations, together representing Americans from coast to coast, we urge you to support the Senate’s Anti-Base Erosion Provision, which removes an unfair advantage favoring foreign insurers over U.S.-headquartered companies. Under current U.S. tax law, foreign based insurers are able to transfer profits to affiliates in offshore tax-havens tax free, but does not afford equal treatment to U.S. based insurers.

As a candidate for President, Donald Trump touched a nerve with voters by pointing out that our tax code is unfair to American companies and employees. One such unfair provision is the insurance tax-haven loophole, which has discriminated against the American insurance industry for over three decades. The proposed Senate tax bill removes the incentive that foreign companies currently exploit to shift thousands of American jobs overseas and avoid paying U.S. taxes. The federal government should never reward or encourage companies to make decisions at the expense of U.S. taxpayers and jobs.

The Senate tax bill includes strong anti-base erosion measures that will go a long way in stopping foreign companies from gaming the U.S. tax code. It is imperative that Congress resist any desperate attempts by foreign insurers to weaken the language thereby preserving their loophole.

Foreign insurance companies are using misleading talking points to prevent a level playing field for U.S. companies. While their inaccurate claims alleging reduced capital and increased prices confuse the public discussion, the bottom-line is they want to avoid paying U.S. taxes and continue gaming the system. The Senate bill would merely require foreign companies to pay U.S. taxes on their U.S. generated insurance business instead of allowing them to use offshore affiliates to strip earnings.

Preserving a loophole for foreign insurers undermines the very foundation of the tax reform effort being considered on Capitol Hill.

At a time when companies are inverting, and the American people are demanding action against corporate tax avoidance, it is long overdue that Congress close the loophole. We urge Congress to support the provision in the Senate bill.

Andrew Langer
Institute for Liberty

Judson Phillips
Tea Party Nation

Ed Martin|
Phyllis Schlafly Eagles

George Landrith
Frontiers of Freedom

John Fredericks
American Jobs Alliance

Rick Manning
Americans for Limited Government

Jerry Rogers
Capitol Allies

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 100 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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Nov. 30, 2017, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement in support of the Senate tax cut plan:

“Americans for Limited Government supports the Senate tax cut plan. The inclusion of the individual mandate repeal, giving 6.6 million Americans relief from paying $3 billion a year in tax penalties is extremely important, and the small business and corporate tax relief will help generate millions of new jobs and investment over the coming years, ending the economy-killing tax rates that have prevailed for decades. In addition, the vast majority of Americans who pay taxes will receive a tax cut through the plan. The Senate bill will also close a loophole that allowed foreign insurance companies to avoid U.S. taxes.

“Passage of the Senate bill will set up an opportunity for the House-Senate conference committee to potentially improve the bill, by adding the full skinny Obamacare repeal, cutting additional hundreds of billions of spending to reduce the deficit and provide larger individual tax rate cuts and incentivizing repatriation earlier in the cycle to give an immediate infusion of trillions of dollars to the economy. Americans owe Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch a debt of gratitude for their efforts to move a tax cut bill through the perilous U.S. Senate.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 100 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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Nov. 29, 2017, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging the Senate Judiciary Committee President Donald Trump’s nominee for the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, Kyle Duncan, to be put to the Senate floor for speedy confirmation:

“There is absolutely no reason why Kyle Duncan, a strongly qualified Trump nominee to sit on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, should be held up in the Senate Judiciary Committee. According to the Attorney General of Louisiana, Jeff Landry, Duncan is the Neil Gorsuch of Louisiana, and he deserves confirmation. Duncan should be a unanimous pick for every Senate Republican who says they want judges who follow the Constitution and the rule of law.”

Attachments:

“Trump court pick Kyle Duncan is the Neil Gorsuch of Louisiana,” By Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry, Nov. 29, 2017 at http://thehill.com/opinion/judiciary/362276-trump-circuit-court-pick-kyle-duncan-is-the-neil-gorsuch-of-louisiana

“Why is the Senate refusing to do their job and confirm judicial and executive branch nominees?” By Natalia Castro, Nov. 29, 2017 at http://netrightdaily.com/2017/11/senate-refusing-job-confirm-judicial-executive-branch-nominees/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 100 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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