McKinney’s credibility hits all-time low as he panders to the NRA & contradicts his statements about helping CT’s working families 

Hartford, CT – A day after Senator McKinney said he would sign a repeal of Connecticut’s gun control legislation that he once voted for, he and the GOP caucuses took their pandering up a notch by releasing their “Republican Alternative Budget Proposal.” The document, which is not an actual budget proposal of any sort, includes very few details. It does, however, include one very dangerous detail: eliminating the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), a policy that helps Connecticut working families improve their economic security.

Confused yet? You should be, because in July 2008, the Associated Press quoted McKinney as saying, “‘I think the earned income tax credit is a much better way to raise people out of poverty, because you’re not hurting any employer. You’re not raising the costs of doing business for any employer,’ McKinney said. ‘You’re giving people some of their tax dollars back and empowering them to use them.'”

Background:

McKinney Said an Earned Income Tax Credit Was A Better Way to Fight Poverty Than Raising the Minimum Wage. The Associated Press reported in July 2008 that, “’I think the earned income tax credit is a much better way to raise people out of poverty, because you’re not hurting any employer. You’re not raising the costs of doing business for any employer,’ McKinney said. ‘You’re giving people some of their tax dollars back and empowering them to use them.’” [Associated Press State & Local Wire, 7/11/2008]

McKinney Supported a State-Level Earned Income Tax Credit. The Hartford Courant reported in January 2008 that, “The Senate Democrats would also create a state earned income tax credit – a controversial proposal that Rell and Republicans have rejected in recent years… But Senate Republican leader John McKinney of Fairfield said Monday night that he supports the earned income credit because it can provide an economic boost in tough financial times. ‘It was actually Ronald Reagan who was the champion of the federal earned income tax credit as a way to stimulate the economy,’ McKinney said. ‘Surpluses by their very nature are evidence that we are overtaxing people.’” [Hartford Courant, 1/29/2008]

McKinney Supported Federal Earned Income Tax Credit. Connecticut Post Online reported in February 2008 that, “McKinney did not return a call for comment Thursday, but in a news release said the federal EITC helps the working poor find affordable housing, pay for health care and ‘keep their children out of poverty.’” [Connecticut Post Online, 2/1/2008]

McKinney Said He Voted for State Earned Income Tax Credit Proposal in 2007. The Hartford Courant reported in February 2008 that, “Senate Republican leader John McKinney of Southport appeared at a news conference last week with Looney in support of the credit and asked a spirited crowd why everyone was acting as if his support was a surprise. McKinney noted that he had voted for the credit last year.” [Hartford Courant, 2/3/2008] 

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