Eliminating income tax is a price too high
The opinion piece from Georgia state Sen. Blake Tillery in the Jan. 20 AJC (“Georgia income tax needs to be eliminated”) appears to give us Georgia taxpayers some much-needed relief. Who isn’t for reduced or eliminated taxes? My family will definitely benefit from the tax-free amounts starting in 2027.
What I didn’t see was how the state of Georgia will make up that missing revenue, which Kiplinger estimates at $3 billion in the first year alone. What have we gained if the state has to cut vital programs to reduce expenses or raise the state sales tax to make up the difference?
Sounds like we are robbing Peter to pay Paul.
PERRY C. WALDEN, DAWSONVILLE
Georgians should not have to pay Trump’s legal bills
I may be a week or so off in writing, but I would like to file my disgust at the thought of my Georgia tax dollars going to anyone who was charged with a crime to reimburse them for lawyer and other fees.
Of course, I’m talking about the White House felon! Had the justice system been left to do its job, there is a very good chance he would have been found guilty of election interference here in Georgia. Yes, innocent until proven guilty — but let’s credit Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis for giving it a good shot and now turn to the testimony, under oath, of Jack Smith in Washington, D.C., which will lead any person with common sense to contemplate the unjustness of paying this man’s legal expenses with our hard-earned tax dollars. Isn’t it enough that he and his cronies are stealing our federal tax dollars in plain sight?
I implore the Georgia Legislature to reconsider this horrid idea and return to issues of greater importance to the citizens of Georgia.
L. FLORIO, ROSWELL
Actions in Venezuela could cause further instability
Georgia Senate Majority Leader Jason Anavitarte’s recent guest opinion column against U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff (“Ossoff needs to take a harder line on Venezuela, but he hasn’t so far”) completely misses the mark.
His attempt to tie an illegal military operation in a foreign country to the murder of Laken Riley is as spurious as it is desperate. Over 10 million Venezuelans have fled the country in large part because of the political and economic instability in the region. However, Trump’s efforts to depose Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and institute a U.S. business-friendly regime change only cause further instability, from which migrants could be expected.
Anavitarte’s conservative gobbledygook provides an uncritical analysis of the root causes of migration, and he unfairly blames an entire nationality for a single crime.
Maduro is not responsible for every Republican grievance about immigration, and it would be a fool’s errand for Ossoff to vote for flawed legislation that Republicans love to tout, but in reality, does nothing to solve the root problem.
For someone who wants to make a bigger name for himself in state politics, this op-ed reads more like red meat than a real argument.
CALEB LUX, ATHENS
Minnesota Somalis are Americans, too
In recent weeks, much has been written about Somalis in Minneapolis. Somalis have been living in Minnesota in significant numbers for over 30 years. The collapse of the Somali government in 1991 triggered mass displacements. They have come and continue to come through legitimate, approved refugee agencies.
Many are American citizens. They have established businesses, pay taxes and are involved in local politics. As federal agents seek to arrest the unlawful, let us insist that justice prevails.
JOSEPH WHITSETT HOLT, BISHOP
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