Cook County voters are angry Posted on July 4th
Day after day, we’re continually reminded that business and politics are worlds apart. While many businesses today are struggling to maintain market share and profitability in light of the current economy, some elected officials seem to do business on another planet.
Perhaps the best example is Cook County Board President Todd Stroger and the band of nine Cook County Commissioners who earlier this year passed a 1 percent sales tax increase, which gave Chicago the notoriety of having the highest in the country at 10.25 percent. As if this $426 million sales tax increase passed in February wasn’t enough, we’ve already heard the Stroger administration issue threats about raising taxes again. This is an astonishing disregard for taxpayers and the people of Cook County can see right through this nonsense.
In fact, a recent poll commissioned by the Chicagoland Chamber shows that 95 percent of Cook County residents polled felt the overall tax burden is high and 92 percent said the current tax climate will impact whom they vote for in future elections.
Quite simply, voters are angry. They’re tired of the recurring headlines about cronyism, corruption and waste. They want their government to provide necessary services, while being efficient and cost-effective. Instead, taxpayers see Cook County officials maintaining the unfortunate status quo, refusing to streamline government or cut costs.
Trackback URL