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'The Missing Class': Obama Talks Middle Class Tax Fairness
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ShareOctober 22, 2007 6:43 PM
ABC News' Sunlen Miller Reports: "What’s on your mind?" asked Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama as he began a roundtable with eight New Hampshire voters at the Black Orchard Grille in Nashua Monday.
An event dubbed a roundtable on "Middle Class Tax Fairness" led to much talk of the difficulties eight votes were facing in their own life.
Sheila Muse works retail, is on her feet all day and expects to be until she’s seventy, as there’s no opportunity to contribute to her 401K.
Stacy Hinkley a mother of young kids said she’s "just surviving" and worried about jobs for her children being gobbled up by workers overseas.
But one of the most compelling testimonials of the morning came from thirty-one year old Shana Potvin. A mother of a child in kindergarten, full-time worker, and student by night, Potvin spoke, with tears welling up in the corners of her eyes, about her hardships.
"I’m doing as good as I can right now but it never seems like enough," Potvin said. Calling her group of people "the missing class" she described that she’s not quite poor, but isn’t wealthy enough to save any money.
Her fifteen year old Volvo broke down over the weekend and she can’t afford to fix it. She makes $14 an hour and can hardly afford childcare for her daughter; she has to charge money on her credit card she doesn't have to get by. Bush’s veto of SCHIP has her questioning what will happen with her daughter’s insurance now.
Senator Obama responded to the testimony, saying "What you describe is what tons of families are going through" with a "Government that compounds the problem, rather than give relief."
Obama said his proposed tax plan would give people live Potvin some modest relief.
The Senator’s middle class tax fairness policy would create a "Making Work Pay" tax credit up to $1,000 for working class New Hampshire families, create a universal mortgage credit for homeowners, and eliminate income taxed for seniors making less than $50,000 year. The plan will also aim to eliminate loopholes and simplify tax filings, as there is "no reason to pay H & R block."
Between shaking and signing autographs after the roundtable, the Senator walked up to Potvin, grabbed her hands, and said "you hang in there."
October 22, 2007 in Vote 2008: Democrats | Permalink | User Comments (3)
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Government is the problem and can't solve the problem...hey Obama if our damn taxes weren't so high then maybe we can afford to pay our bills! Throw the IRS code into the garbage--we need a new tax system. 10%, no deductions and leave me alone. Anything is better than what we have now!
Posted by: pray4liberty | Oct 22, 2007 7:14:28 PM
Ms. Potvin is the kind of person the Democrats should have used as the poster child for SCHIP, rather than the Frosts with their 3 big late model automobiles, posh private schools and parents working "intermittently" or "part time."
Posted by: Kathy | Oct 22, 2007 8:08:57 PM
Obama may not have all the answers; the issues outlined by Shana and the others goes beyond heart wrenching. On the eve where he is about to win the Democratic primary the story is touching and we all hope that the changes President Obama will bring to our country will be far reaching and will help to eliminate the " missing class". The dedication Ms Povin displays is in fact the type of selflessness we all admire and can derive motivation from when witnessed. Get out and Vote , Vote smart Vote Obama! Hang in there everyone!
Posted by: bob | Jan 7, 2008 8:20:38 PM
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