New Ad Holds Rehberg Accountable for "Unreasonable Taxes"

The Montana Democratic Party has released an ad holding Congressman Dennis Rehberg accountable for voting to give multimillionaires like himself special tax breaks, even though they already pay lower rates than most Montanans.

"After 12 years in Washington, Congressman Dennis Rehberg has become too out of touch to make responsible decisions," said Ted Dick Executive Director of the Montana Democratic Party.  "Congressman Rehberg isn't looking out for Montana.  He's looking out for special interests that bankroll his career, and Montana is paying the price."

Here's the transcript of the ad:

Announcer: After 12 years in Washington D.C., Dennis Rehberg has forgotten where he comes from.  

Announcer: Because Rehberg voted to protect special tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires, even while multimillionaires like Rehberg already pay a lower tax rate than the rest of us here in Montana.  

Rehberg: I guess I ask you, is that unreasonable?

Announcer: Yes, Congressman, it is.  

Announcer: Contact Dennis Rehberg and remind him he's supposed to be a Congressman for all Montanans.

Last year, Congressman Rehberg voted for the controversial "Cut, Cap, Balance" plan, which would have made it virtually impossible to end special tax loopholes for the wealthiest Americans [HR 2560, Vote 606, 7/19/11].  According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Congressman Rehberg's bill "[protected] tax breaks and tax subsidies for the wealthy and powerful by erecting a constitutional barrier to any measure that would raise any revenue.” [CBPP, 7/16/11]

Meanwhile, multimillionaires like Congressman Rehberg are paying taxes at far lower rates than most Americans.  Bloomberg News reports that "about 25 percent of millionaires in the U.S. pay federal taxes at lower effective rates than a significant portion of middle-income taxpayers [Bloomberg, 10/12/11].

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