So How's Your Tax Refund? Thanks to GOP Tax Scam, Big Banks Made Extra $28 Billion Last Year
"I thought Donald Trump said he was going to stop Wall Street from getting away with murder, not give big banks another massive tax break."

While headlines continue to proliferate about average Americans discovering they will not receive the tax return they were expecting--and in many cases, depending on--new federal date released Thursday showed that major U.S. banks earned an extra $28 billion in profits last year thanks to the tax scam bill passed by the Republican Party and signed by President Donald Trump at the end of 2017.
"Now is the time to take on the greed and power of Wall Street, break up the largest financial institutions in the country, stop big banks from ripping off the American people, and make sure Wall Street CEOs pay their fair share of taxes." --Warren Gunnels, staff director for Sen. Bernie SandersAs was said by critics of the new tax law at the time, the rich and corporations were given an "early Christmas gift" when the bill was signed, but according to new figures from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) it is a gift that continues to give to the nation's banking industry.
Citing the FDIC's latest quarterly profile of the 5,406 banks it insures, The Hill reports that yearly profits for those institutions--which made nearly $237 in profit overall--"increased increased $72. 4 billion from 2017, and the rise includes $28.8 billion more than banks would have kept under the previous tax regime. Bank profits in the fourth quarter of 2018 rose to $59 billion, an $8.1 billion increase from the same period in 2017."
As one Twitter user, Bobby Reyes, put it: "So, let me get this straight... We can't give ppl healthcare, affordable housing, rent stabilization but we can afford to give banks this?"
Banks reaping the rewards of the Republican tax plan while working class Americans continue to face the uncertainty of their 2018 tax liabilities and struggle to make ends meet, struck Warren Gunnels, staff director for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), as a stark contrast.
"I thought Donald Trump said he was going to stop Wall Street from getting away with murder, not give big banks another massive tax break," Gunnels said. "Now is the time to take on the greed and power of Wall Street, break up the largest financial institutions in the country, stop big banks from ripping off the American people, and make sure Wall Street CEOs pay their fair share of taxes."
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just three days to go in our Spring Campaign, we're falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |

While headlines continue to proliferate about average Americans discovering they will not receive the tax return they were expecting--and in many cases, depending on--new federal date released Thursday showed that major U.S. banks earned an extra $28 billion in profits last year thanks to the tax scam bill passed by the Republican Party and signed by President Donald Trump at the end of 2017.
"Now is the time to take on the greed and power of Wall Street, break up the largest financial institutions in the country, stop big banks from ripping off the American people, and make sure Wall Street CEOs pay their fair share of taxes." --Warren Gunnels, staff director for Sen. Bernie SandersAs was said by critics of the new tax law at the time, the rich and corporations were given an "early Christmas gift" when the bill was signed, but according to new figures from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) it is a gift that continues to give to the nation's banking industry.
Citing the FDIC's latest quarterly profile of the 5,406 banks it insures, The Hill reports that yearly profits for those institutions--which made nearly $237 in profit overall--"increased increased $72. 4 billion from 2017, and the rise includes $28.8 billion more than banks would have kept under the previous tax regime. Bank profits in the fourth quarter of 2018 rose to $59 billion, an $8.1 billion increase from the same period in 2017."
As one Twitter user, Bobby Reyes, put it: "So, let me get this straight... We can't give ppl healthcare, affordable housing, rent stabilization but we can afford to give banks this?"
Banks reaping the rewards of the Republican tax plan while working class Americans continue to face the uncertainty of their 2018 tax liabilities and struggle to make ends meet, struck Warren Gunnels, staff director for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), as a stark contrast.
"I thought Donald Trump said he was going to stop Wall Street from getting away with murder, not give big banks another massive tax break," Gunnels said. "Now is the time to take on the greed and power of Wall Street, break up the largest financial institutions in the country, stop big banks from ripping off the American people, and make sure Wall Street CEOs pay their fair share of taxes."

While headlines continue to proliferate about average Americans discovering they will not receive the tax return they were expecting--and in many cases, depending on--new federal date released Thursday showed that major U.S. banks earned an extra $28 billion in profits last year thanks to the tax scam bill passed by the Republican Party and signed by President Donald Trump at the end of 2017.
"Now is the time to take on the greed and power of Wall Street, break up the largest financial institutions in the country, stop big banks from ripping off the American people, and make sure Wall Street CEOs pay their fair share of taxes." --Warren Gunnels, staff director for Sen. Bernie SandersAs was said by critics of the new tax law at the time, the rich and corporations were given an "early Christmas gift" when the bill was signed, but according to new figures from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) it is a gift that continues to give to the nation's banking industry.
Citing the FDIC's latest quarterly profile of the 5,406 banks it insures, The Hill reports that yearly profits for those institutions--which made nearly $237 in profit overall--"increased increased $72. 4 billion from 2017, and the rise includes $28.8 billion more than banks would have kept under the previous tax regime. Bank profits in the fourth quarter of 2018 rose to $59 billion, an $8.1 billion increase from the same period in 2017."
As one Twitter user, Bobby Reyes, put it: "So, let me get this straight... We can't give ppl healthcare, affordable housing, rent stabilization but we can afford to give banks this?"
Banks reaping the rewards of the Republican tax plan while working class Americans continue to face the uncertainty of their 2018 tax liabilities and struggle to make ends meet, struck Warren Gunnels, staff director for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), as a stark contrast.
"I thought Donald Trump said he was going to stop Wall Street from getting away with murder, not give big banks another massive tax break," Gunnels said. "Now is the time to take on the greed and power of Wall Street, break up the largest financial institutions in the country, stop big banks from ripping off the American people, and make sure Wall Street CEOs pay their fair share of taxes."

