BRIDGE BRIEF: Cuccinelli's Disastrous Tax Plan

Cuccinelli Proposed Cutting Taxes By $1.4 Billion By Reducing Income And Corporate Taxes. According to NBC Washington, “Virginia Republican gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli released his tax plan Tuesday that would cut about $1.4 billion in taxes by reducing the state’s personal income and corporate tax rate. His proposed plan, “Economic Growth and Virginia Jobs Plan,” would reduce the personal income tax from 5.75 percent to 5 percent and the corporate tax rate from 6 percent to 4 percent.” [NBC Washington, 5/8/13] More Than 75% Of The Tax Cuts Would Go To Households Earning At Least $108,000 A Year. According to the Washington Post, “The Richmond-based Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis examined one piece of that proposal — Cuccinelli’s plan to reduce Virginia’s top individual tax rate from 5.75 percent to 5 percent — and found that the state’s wealthiest citizens would benefit the most. ‘Nearly 4 in 10 Virginians (39 percent), mostly low- and moderate-income households, would see no reduction in their income tax bill,’ the institute said. ‘No Virginian earning less than $21,000 would receive a tax cut under the proposal and only half of all families earning between $21,000 and $39,000 would see their taxes reduced.’ More than three-fourths of the benefits of the tax cut would go to households earning at least $108,000, the analysis found, , while middle-class taxpayers would get a relatively small cut. [Washington Post, 5/16/13] Washington Post Editorial: Like Mitt Romney, Cuccinelli Refuses To Say How He Would Pay For His Tax Plan. According to a Washington Post staff editorial, “Like Mitt Romney, Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II wants to cut taxes — by a lot. Like Mr. Romney, Mr. Cuccinelli, the Republican candidate for governor, promises this would not reduce government revenues by a dime, since he would also eliminate significant tax loopholes and deductions. And like Mr. Romney, Mr. Cuccinelli adamantly refuses to identify these loopholes and deductions. Why would Mr. Cuccinelli expect Virginians to fall for this?” [Washington Post, 5/9/13]

BRIDGE BRIEF: Cuccinelli's Opposition to Bipartisan Transportation Plan

Washington Post Editorial: Cuccinelli Opposed “Every Significant, Politically Viable” Effort on Transportation “For More than a Decade.” According to a staff editorial in the Washington Post, “In fact, it is consistent with his opposition to every significant, politically viable effort to rescue the state’s transportation fund for more than a decade.” [Washington Post, Editorial, 3/17/13]

Republican Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling: Cuccinelli's Opposition to the Transportation Compromise “Shows How Out of Touch He Is With the People of Virginia.” According to the Washington Examiner, “Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, a Republican who may enter the race as an independent, also chastised Cuccinelli, saying his opposition could prevent the General Assembly from finally solving the state's transportation problems. ‘His opposition to this historic transportation agreement just shows how out of touch he is with the people of Virginia,’ Bolling said. ‘It is not the least bit helpful to have him coming in at the last minute criticizing this proposal. That's not what leadership is about.’” [Washington Examiner, 2/21/13]

Infographic: The Curious Timing of Cuccinelli's Investments

Here's a new infographic/timeline illustrating the curious timing of Ken Cuccinelli's stock transactions in Star Scientific paired with his vacations/gifts from the company's scandal-ridden CEO, Jonnie Williams.

American Bridge Announces New Effort To Defend 2016 Dems From GOP Smears

CorrectTheRecord2016.org will fight back against Republican attacks

WASHINGTON – Expanding its scope beyond Republican candidates for office, American Bridge 21st Century announced today the launch of Correct the Record, a dedicated research, tracking and rapid response communications project to defend Democrats in preparation for the 2016 Presidential election.

Though more than three years from the next presidential election, Democratic leaders like former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Vice President Joe Biden, and others are already being subjected to coordinated attacks from Republican figures and organizations. In May, Karl Rove’s American Crossroads released an attack ad against Secretary Clinton, politicizing the tragedy in Benghazi. In June, another Republican Super PAC, America Rising, launched a “Stop Hillary 2016” campaign. And House Republican leaders are using taxpayer dollars to fund partisan witch hunts with a clear eye towards 2016.

Rand Paul “Agrees to Disagree” With Self on Gay Marriage

In the aftermath of yesterday’s historic Supreme Court decision overturning DOMA, Sen. Rand Paul appeared to distance himself from his Republican colleagues eager to rush to the wrong side of history. ABC News reported that “Paul said he agreed with [Justice Anthony] Kennedy,” calling the ruling “appropriate” and “tried to strike a balance.” But hours later, Paul debased himself and any moderate image he’s been crafting in a cheap ploy to curry favor from Glenn Beck. As Beck speculated on the possibility of the court’s decision leading to polygamy, Paul threw himself head-first down the slippery slope by raising the specter of legalized bestiality: “But it is difficult because if we have no laws on this people take it to one extension further. Does it have to be humans?” [gallery link="file" ids="10219,10220"]

VIDEO: EW Jackson says Great Society worse for black families than slavery

As you may have heard, EW Jackson yesterday said that government programs started in the 60s were worse for black families than slavery was.

RELAUNCH: ItsNotJustAkin.com

"Legitimate rape." Forced ultrasounds. "Something that God intended." These aren't isolated gaffes, but a fundamental problem in GOP policies on rape, pregnancy and women's personal health care decisions. Even if they don't talk about it the same way, the shocking views expressed by Todd Akin are shared by many others in the Republican Party.

ItsNotJustAkin.com

What else could New Jersey use $12 million for?

Throwing common sense and fiscal discipline aside, Gov. Chris Christie today announced he is unnecessarily holding a special election to replace the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg in October rather than including the race on the ballot for New Jersey's regularly scheduled November elections. Christie's willingness to needlessly throw away 12 million in taxpayer dollars for the sole reason of boosting his own reelection campaign tears down the myth of Christie as a bold and principled governor. Today's decision was not that of a leader, but one of a craven, self-interested politician. While Christie may not care what it costs, taxpayers surely do. What else could New Jersey do with $12 million? A lot. Here's a sampling, courtesy of American Bridge:

• Rebuild 1.3 miles of boardwalk in Asbury Park. [USA Today, 12/5/12]
• Fund two months of food bank and soup kitchen assistance for areas affected by Hurricane Sandy [Letter to Speaker Boehner From Office of the President, 12/7/2012]
• Pay for 150% the cost of rebuilding the Belmar City Boardwalk ($8 million) [NPR, 5/26/13]
• Restore over half of Christie’s cuts to medical services for the elderly (he cut them $21M). [NJ.com,6/29/12]
• Pay for all of the non-profit grants awarded by the Hurricane Sandy Relief Fund with nearly $1M to spare. [Hurricane Sandy New Jersey Relief Fund, Viewed 6/4/2013]
• The entire cost of funding New Jersey’s Family Success Centers. [Christie Announcement Of Family Center Funding, 10/9/12]
• The cost of funding New Jersey’s Cancer Education and Early Detection Program [Office of the Governor, October, 2012]
• The cost of increasing local aid grants for improving street, safety and quality of life improvements by 15% (the state has spent $76.2M). [NJ.com, 5/1/13]
• More than the entire budget of the Skills4Jersey Training Grant Program (it’s $11M). [Notice of Grant Opportunity, Fiscal Year 2013]
• Brand new high tech fire trucks, police vehicles, ambulance vans, and other emergency management equipment, as recently granted by the federal government to Jersey City. [NJ.com, 6/9/12]
• Restore the vetoed tax cut for Jersey Shore production, with $11.5M to spare. [NYT, 9/26/11]

EW Jackson on GOP ticket: "More homogeneous than almost any ticket ever"

Today on WMAL, EW Jackson put to rest any talk about disagreement or space between himself and Ken Cuccinelli. Jackson said:

"We are in fundamental agreement. I've heard that this ticket is probably more homogeneous than almost any ticket ever in the history of Virginia, So there's no stark disagreement between us."

Cuccinelli & EW Jackson See Eye-To-Eye On Planned Parenthood Attacks

Another day, another offensive video showing just how extreme the Cuccinelli-Jackson ticket really is. As we learned last week, EW Jackson made his infamous Planned Parenthood-KKK comments in an effort to defend Ken Cuccinelli from attacks about his comment comparing abortion to slavery. Today, POLITICO unearthed video from 2011 showing Cuccinelli using a similar argument to attack Planned Parenthood and its founder Margaret Sanger (an attack that was debunked by FactCheck.org that year).