Friday, March 29

Letters to the Editor: The Inflation Reduction Act: finally some good news


To the editor: Joe Biden was not my first choice when he ran for the 2020 Democratic nomination. I didn’t believe he would propose ambitious legislation.

In his first year in office, a massive infrastructure bill was passed, the largest in decades. The Chips Act, a gun safety bill, an expansion of veterans’ benefits and the American Rescue Plan have all passed during the Biden administration’s first two years. This weekend a bill passed the Senate that includes the first major investment in combating climate change, allows Medicare to negotiate drug prices, shores up the Affordable Care Act, places an excise tax on stock buybacks and creates a minimum corporate tax. Any one portion of this legislation would have been significant. Taken together, they are a major achievement.

Biden received no support from obstructionist Republicans. Nor could Biden rely on personal popularity because despite rapid job growth and an upward trend in wages, his approval rating remains low. Biden was not my first choice for president; clearly, I was wrong in my evaluation.

Fred Burgess, Camarillo

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To the editor: Despite the fact that the Senate-passed Inflation Reduction Act is a shadow of the Build Back Better proposal, it addresses climate change, taxes and drug costs and is an important first step. In order to obtain Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s vote, her Democratic colleagues had to remove the provision that eliminated the carried interest tax loophole that benefits only the wealthiest hedge fund and private equity executives. This robs the government of millions of dollars only to benefit the super rich.

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I can’t help concluding that the only reason Sinema insisted on this change is because her campaigns benefit from these wealthy individuals and companies. A prime example of the corrosive effect of money in politics.

Barbara H. Bergen, Los Angeles

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To the editor: I’m old enough to remember halcyon mid-20th-century days. That’s when politicians, irrespective of their political affiliation, primarily assessed just one anticipated result of their votes on any proposed legislation: Its enactment’s likely enduring benefit to the average American.

Those days are long gone. Over the last few decades GOP politicians increasingly have adopted a different priority for assessing a bill: Its enactment’s likely benefit to the party that proposed it.

How not a single Republican senator voted for the direly needed Inflation Reduction Act is no secret: Any GOP vote for that Democrat-authored bill, however prudent its terms, would provoke immediate party censure and ouster in the next election.

Might congressional Trumpsters ever be replaced by Eisenhower Republicans? Evidently only in my dreams.

Devra Mindell, Santa Monica

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To the editor: As a passionate Californian climate advocate, I agree with Jerry Brown that “Even California is not doing enough” on climate. Drastic climate action is needed especially as our sea levels and temperatures rise.

There is finally a shot at exactly what we so desperately need. The Inflation Reduction Act, which includes a huge climate deal, is pivotal in taking the climate action that will immensely change the fate of Americans and ultimately the world. It is evident that climate change disproportionately affects marginalized, low income and BIPOC communities; therefore, the environmental justice initiatives included in this bill are revolutionary. In order for climate solutions to be successful, marginalized people must be put at the forefront of the climate movement.

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Ellen Nguyen, Riverside

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To the editor: As the authors of a recent op-ed say, “carbon capture technology is aggravating climate change” — because it is often used to extract more oil. Why should we pump carbon into the atmosphere then try to pull it back? Let’s stop the emitting.

Putting a gradually increasing price on carbon emissions at the mine or well is a good way to slow those emissions. This is being done in other countries, and we will be hit with tariffs for our exports to those countries because we are not pricing carbon.

The next step after the Inflation Reduction Act would be to pass a bill such as the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act, which would charge a pollution fee to fossil fuel companies and return the funds to us to compensate for rising prices. The best thing to do is vote for representatives who will protect our planet for our children and grandchildren.

Maggie Wineburgh-Freed, Los Angeles

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