We’re Paying for Their Windfall: Why the Middle Class Should Reject OBBBA

By a Middle-Class American Taxpayer

They said it was a “big and beautiful” bill. What they passed was a Trojan horse: one that sells out the future of working families to protect corporate profit, defend Trump-era tax policy, and undermine the very programs middle-class Americans will rely on tomorrow.

As a middle-class taxpayer, I’m not looking for handouts. I’m asking for fairness, accountability, and a system that doesn’t treat people like me as a silent funding source for billionaires. OBBBA fails every part of that test.

It Rewards the Rich and Tells the Rest of Us to Be Grateful

Let’s be crystal clear:
– OBBBA keeps the corporate tax rate at 21%, the same rate gifted to big business in 2017.
– It expands bonus depreciation, letting profitable corporations deduct more today and pay less tomorrow.
– It includes no general minimum tax, and no new rules to stop offshore tax dodging.

Meanwhile, the rest of us?
– No new relief for food costs, fuel, or medical bills.
– No cost-of-living rebate.
– Just a recycled tax structure that ignores the reality of household budgets in 2025.

That’s not balance. That’s betrayal.

It Pretends to Help Families, but It’s Mostly Cosmetic

Sure, OBBBA bumps the Child Tax Credit from $2,000 to $2,200, with inflation adjustments starting in 2026. But compared to the fully refundable $3,600 we had during COVID relief? It’s a step backward dressed as progress.

And while the bill touts “Trump Accounts”—$1,000 savings accounts for newborns—that’s a one-time gift tied to a birth year, not a structural investment in working families. It’s policy for campaign ads, not everyday life.

As for child care? The expanded Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit only helps if you have upfront cash to spend and a qualified employer program. For families scraping by on unpredictable hours or gig work, this does nothing.

It Rolls Back Climate Gains—And Makes Us Pay for It

In the middle of a climate crisis and record-high utility bills, OBBBA actively undermines clean energy tax credits passed in the Inflation Reduction Act. It accelerates phase-outs on:
– Rooftop solar
– Home energy upgrades
– Electric vehicle incentives

The result?
Analysts say households could see $170 to $480 more per year in utility costs. That’s not collateral damage—it’s a direct hit on family budgets, for the sake of appeasing fossil fuel donors and polluting industries.

It Raids Our Future to Pay for Corporate Welfare

OBBBA isn’t just regressive—it’s dangerous. Because it’s so costly, it triggers automatic cuts under federal PAYGO rules:
– Up to $500 billion in Medicare cuts over the next decade.
– Acceleration of the Social Security trust fund’s insolvency to 2032.

This means the very programs working families depend on—if not today, then soon—are being hollowed out to make room for more corporate giveaways.

This isn’t about spending control. It’s about stealing long-term stability from the public to fund short-term shareholder gains.

What the Middle Class Actually Cares About—And What’s Missing

We’re not asking for everything. We’re asking for policies that match the pressure we live with every day. OBBBA leaves out:
– No cost-of-living relief for essentials like groceries, utilities, or healthcare premiums
– No expansion of dependent care credits that would make child care truly affordable
– No fix for the AMT or SALT deduction cap, which hits upper-middle-income households in high-cost states
– No meaningful help with college costs or rising interest on student loans
– No long-term protection for Medicare or Social Security, despite accelerated insolvency risks
– No corporate accountability—just extended breaks and no minimum tax

If this is what a “middle-class-friendly” bill looks like, we’re being gaslit.

The Verdict: It’s Not Just Not Enough—It’s the Wrong Direction

If you’re middle class, you’re being played. You’re told to be thankful that tax cuts for the rich are being extended. You’re told a few hundred dollars in temporary credits is enough to trade away decades of public benefit stability. You’re told corporate America needs “room to grow”—but your family doesn’t need help to survive.

Reject that logic. Reject this bill.

We deserve a tax system that serves people, not portfolios. We deserve healthcare that lasts and energy bills we can afford. We deserve a government that sees middle-class stability not as a threat to profits, but as the foundation of the economy.

OBBBA isn’t reform. It’s a retreat. And it’s time we said no.

The author is a middle-income parent and independent contractor living in the Mountain West. They believe in balanced budgets, honest policy, and calling out political gaslighting when they see it.