Students protest McClintock’s office

Student activists organized by California Fair Share gathered at Rep. Tom McClintock’s district office in Granite Bay on Feb. 28 to call on him to stop the sequester by closing corporate tax loopholes.

The students unfurled and gave the Republican congressman the 100-foot banner constructed from more than 600 petition signatures.

Sierra College students protest Feb. 28 outside Rep. Tom McClintock’s office. Photo/Provided

“Hundreds of citizens and dozens of student leaders have come together in the past few weeks to make one thing clear: we should close corporate tax loopholes, not make cuts that will lay-off teachers, police and firefighters,” said Patrick Stelmach, an organizer with California Fair Share, said in a statement. “With California schools already overcrowded and underfunded, we cannot afford to slash education funding with reckless abandon. It is time to make corporations pay their fair share. Rep. McClintock should stand up for our kids’ future, not corporate profits.”

The group met with McClintock’s staff Thursday afternoon.

“McClintock wants the sequester cuts to go through. His position on corporate tax loopholes is he favors eliminating them but only if the overall rate was lowered. While we applaud his intention to close loopholes, we are opposed to the drastic budget cuts and giving corporations more tax breaks,” Stelmach said.