NBC and ABC Ignore Companies Forcing Change in Connecticut Tax Hike

June 3rd, 2015 12:38 PM

On Wednesday, only CBS This Morning noticed a setback for Democrats proposing a massive tax hike in Connecticut, with co-host Norah O’Donnell reporting: “The Connecticut Post says two major corporations, General Electric and Aetna, forced changes in Connecticut's proposed budget. The companies said they would consider leaving the state over plans to raise business taxes. Democratic lawmakers rewrote the tax package Monday night.”

That 15-second mention was the only network coverage of the liberal overreach. NBC and ABC completely ignored the story.

The Connecticut Post article explained on Tuesday:

Criticism and veiled threats from two of the state's iconic corporations – General Electric and Aetna – would consider leaving the state forced Democrats to rewrite their planned tax package Monday.

Lawmakers made last-minute changes Monday night to a proposed two-year, $40 billion Democratic budget that had prompted several major employers to sharply criticize proposed tax increases, with two raising the possibility of leaving the state....

Fairfield-based General Electric issued a morning statement indicating that a retroactive tax hike on state-based corporations could lead the company to consider moving from Connecticut. Aetna followed suit in the afternoon.  

NBC’s silence on the issue was particularly stunning given that Meet the Press moderator Chuck Todd hyped tax cuts in Kansas as potentially damaging to Republicans heading into the 2014 midterm election. Opening the September 21, 2014 Meet the Press, Todd proclaimed: “Some Americans suddenly saying tax cutting has gone too far....Could Republicans now become the victims of a new anti anti-tax fever?”

One week earlier, on September 15, Todd declared that if GOP Kansas Governor Sam Brownback “loses re-election, he’s going to essentially have lost because he cut taxes too much.” Brownback won reelection with 50% of the vote.

Will Todd now seize on the Connecticut tax hike blowback to announce that Americans think tax raising has “gone too far”?