If you’re not angry, then you just aren’t paying attention.

The recently passed Republican tax bill, which Fred Upton voted for, is a giveaway to the rich that exacerbates income inequality, explodes the federal deficit ($1.4 trillion), strips health insurance from millions of low-to-medium income and elderly people, and will put untold burdens on the working class for years to come.

By removing $1.4 trillion of public funds directly from vital public infrastructure, facilities, departments and programs, you better believe there will be repercussions to pay.

Some of us regular folk may get a small bonus next year from this tax plan, but it will be an illusion. When public transportation fees rise, utilities go up, health insurance premiums jump (10 to 20 percent), and you find yourself paying more to fix automobile damages from bad roads, you’ll be wishing you had your properly funded society back. Instead, the top 1 percent will be getting their million dollar tax cuts year after year, without a care in the world about us.

An analysis of the bill by the non-partisan Tax Policy Center indicates that in 2018, 67 percent of the tax cuts will go to the wealthiest 20 percent of taxpayers. When the bill reaches maturity in 2027, 82 percent of tax cuts will go to those in the top 1 percent of the economic ladder.

By the end of the decade, 53 percent of Americans will be paying higher taxes.

Why Fred Upton and nearly every other congressional Republican felt the working classes needed a more emphatic kick in the teeth is beyond reason. But that’s what happens when you get corrupted by the elite special interests. It’s impossible to not see how giant corporate campaign contributions corrupt our government officials.

It’s time for Fred CorrUpton to go.

Damon Wolf

Benton Harbor