Deficit time bomb...Roskam's cruel legacy to the Illinois Sixth

Coasting to 5 re-election victories as my congressman in the Illinois Sixth by twenty point margins, Peter Roskam entered his sixth term with two electoral anchors weighing down his incumbency. First was his wholehearted embrace of the vulgarian Trump, whose lies, bullying, calls to his most fevered supporters for violence against rally protesters repulsed much of his decent voting base. Second was a Book of Accomplishments with all blank pages, be it opposing health care for the needy, women’s reproductive rights, decent pay and job opportunities for all, establishing a fair immigration system, sensible gun control. Possibly the most egregious blank page bore the title ‘Environmental Sanity.’

But the beginning of 2017 gave Roskam an opening. As Chair of the House Ways & Means Subcommittee on Tax Policy, he shepherded the signature GOP tax cut for the rich through Congress, leaving but a pittance for the majority of middle class voters Roskam must have for re-election. His cynical campaign ads imply the dubious claim of $1,400 in tax relief to every middle class family, while ignoring the impending deficit time bomb that’s already here and likely to impede rather than stimulate economic growth. That ignores every fiscal fiber in Roskam’s bones that he’s preached to the Sixth when opposing critically needed infrastructure, medical assistance to the poor, education and every other important service needed to improve our society. Upon passage of the Jobs and Tax Cut Act, Roskam’s GOP predicted a $440 billion deficit in Fiscal '18, down $226 billion from Fiscal ’17. Instead it went up $113 to $779 billion, a 17% increase. But hang on…Fiscal ’19’s deficit is now pegged at $981 billion, a whopping 27% increase. What Roskam has really accomplished is decoupling economic growth from lower deficits such as we had under the last two Democratic administrations. Should the slightest economic downturn occur, the deficit could soar to uncontrollable levels never before experienced.

Seeking a seventh term, Peter Roskam has filled in but one page in his Book of Accomplishments. Ominously, it’s written in red ink.