A SPECIAL AND URGENT REQUEST

Trey Lefler, a member of our Republican family and staff member of Senator Lamar Alexander’s campaign, was involved in a serious car accident on Monday, November 19. He is currently in critical condition at the UT Medical Center. If you pray, we ask that you join in praying for his healing, his recovery and for his family and friends.

THANKSGIVING: MAKE IT MORE THAN JUST A MEAL

The traditions of Thanksgiving are truly a blessing. A single woman, Sarah J. Hale, wrote to President Abraham Lincoln to petition him to make Thanksgiving "a national and fixed Union festival." The power of an active citizen has given us the opportunity to reflect on the things that are good and decent about our country and our world. While observing your Day of Thanksgiving, pause to remember the men and women who have defended and are defending our freedoms; those who are the first-responders in the fire halls, the police stations, the hospitals; those who teach our children in school; those who shepherd our congregations; those who tend to our sick; those who make America the greatest nation in this world.

While giving thanks, also know that those who have been blessed are called to give. Make sure to serve others, give charitably to those who are in need and be kind neighbors, great citizens. That will, in turn, continue to make our nation great.

I am thankful that the Republican Party unashamedly speaks for America first, for families and for all that is best for our nation.

THE LAST TIME TO DEDUCT YOUR SALES TAX FOR CHRISTMAS SHOPPING-THANKS TO DEMOCRATS

Thank the Republican Members of Congress of Tennessee who do more than offer lip-service in their support of the sales tax deductibility!

Make sure to view the press conference on the TRP YouTube page.

Republican Delegation Unified in Urging Congress to Reject $200 Million Tax Increase Aimed at Tennesseans: As Democrats fail to act to save sales tax deductibility, Tennessee’s Republican Senators and Congressmen repeat call for preserving sales tax deductibility.

With the busiest shopping day of the year coming the day after Thanksgiving, the Tennessee Republican Party and Tennessee’s Republican congressional delegation Tuesday called on Congress to extend the state sales tax deduction past the end of the year.

The sales tax deduction expires at the end of the year and Congressional Democrats who claim to favor extending it have done nothing to spare the people of Tennessee and eight other states from this impending tax increase.

The sales tax deduction was passed in 2004 thanks to the leadership of Republican lawmakers, including high-profile efforts by several Tennessee Republicans. The Republican-controlled Congress extended the deduction for two more years in 2005.

Now, Democrats are letting it expire.

Tennessee’s Republican delegation is unified in support of making sales tax deductibility permanent in the federal tax code:

Sen. Lamar Alexander said:

“Making state sales taxes deductible will put more than $400 in the pockets of nearly 600,000 Tennesseans who itemize their taxes this year. Doing so permanently is an issue of fairness for Tennesseans.”

Sen. Bob Corker said:

“This is a simple matter of tax fairness and common sense. Tennessee is fortunate not to have a state income tax, but Tennesseans should not be penalized for this on their federal tax returns. Making the state sales tax deduction permanent keeps more money in the pockets of hard-working families and it’s the right thing to do.”

Rep. John J. Duncan Jr., representing Tennessee’s 2nd Congressional District, said:

“I have worked on this issue for many years with several of my fellow colleagues in Congress and will continue to fight for the fair treatment of all Tennesseans under federal income tax law. This is very important to the people of Tennessee and I am confident that Congress will once again realize the inequity and take action to alleviate this unfair hardship.”

Rep. Marsha Blackburn, representing Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District, said:

“There are Members of this delegation that claim they oppose a tax increase on hard-working Tennesseans, but their actions prove otherwise. We are already facing the largest tax increase in U.S. history and their lack of inaction to ensure that Tennessee taxpayers don’t pay an extra $400 to the bloated federal government is inexcusable.

“It’s time for members of the new Majority to stand up for Tennessee taxpayers, instead of being a rubber stamp for the tax and spend, liberal elite currently running Congress. As a member of the Majority, I pushed through legislation that extended the sales tax deductibility. The question is — will Democrats do the same?”

Rep. Zach Wamp, representing Tennessee’s 3rd Congressional District, said:

“As the Member who originally worked with U.S. Reps. Kevin Brady and Brian Baird to set up the team to bring about the reinstatement of the sales tax deduction for Tennessee and other states, I am again fighting for this extension. I hope that a reasonable compromise can be reached here in Congress to continue the sales tax exemption before it expires on December 31,”

Rep. David Davis, representing Tennessee’s 1st Congressional District, said:

“Action is long overdue to protect the taxpayers of Tennessee. The sales tax deduction should be made permanent as a matter of fairness to ensure that Tennesseans will not have to fight this battle constantly.”

Before 1986, the tax code allowed for a sales tax deduction. When the deduction was repealed, it created an unfair disparity between states that charge income tax and the nine states that do not, including Tennessee. Without this deduction, residents in six states that don’t have an income tax would pay much more to the Federal government than individuals with comparable profiles in other states.

See the entire press release

PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE IN TENNESSEE

Congratulations to Belmont University on reaping the fruits of a tremendous effort to obtain a Presidential Debate site on their Nashville campus in the Curb Event Center on October 7, 2008! Because the debate will be a Townhall format permitting questions from the audience, we’ll need to keep a sharp eye out for a plant or two.

Congratulations, Belmont!