Pennsylvania Candidate Targets Incumbent Over Tax Proposal
Pennsylvania Democrat congressional hopeful Janelle Stelson is criticizing incumbent Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) for his backing of a national sales tax initiative. However, her ads don’t mention that this legislation would also scrap federal income, payroll, estate, and gift taxes.
Stelson is currently running several advertisements accusing Perry of championing a “huge new tax that makes everything more expensive and hits working people the hardest.”
One of her ads provides a brief summary of the FairTax Act of 2025 but omits most details, only showing the phrase “enacting a national sales tax to be administered.”
The FairTax Act of 2025, which is mentioned in these ads, aims to implement a national sales tax while abolishing federal income, payroll, estate, and gift taxes, as well as dismantling the Internal Revenue Service.
This legislation also includes provisions for a tax rebate, which requires individuals to possess a Social Security number and be lawful residents. The proposal is designed to be revenue neutral, meaning that the overall tax revenue would remain unchanged.
Stelson’s 2026 campaign against Perry is considered a “rematch” of the previous 2024 congressional election, where she narrowly lost by around 5,000 votes, as reported by City and State PA.
Reilly Richardson, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), responded to Stelson’s claims, stating, “Retread loser Janelle Stelson has nothing to run on, so she’s resorted to blatantly misrepresenting Congressman Scott Perry’s position on taxes. The truth is, Stelson supports raising Pennsylvanians’ taxes, while Congressman Perry helped lower them.”
On the flip side, Stelson has also advocated for the removal of certain tax policies that benefit workers, such as the no-tax-on-tips and no-tax-on-overtime-pay measures part of the Working Families Tax Cut. In a recent swing-district tour, groups like Americans for Prosperity highlighted the financial benefits of the law for workers and small businesses in Pennsylvania’s 10th Congressional District.
Earlier reports from Breitbart News indicated that Perry was a cosponsor of legislation aimed at securing Trump’s no-tax-on-tips promise. He had expressed his belief that “you should keep absolutely as much money as you can that you earn,” indicating his commitment to financial benefits for the public.
Perry also emphasized the need for spending cuts alongside reductions in federal revenue, suggesting, “If we’re going to take in less revenue, then you’re going to have to spend less money, so there’s two sides of this coin,” while critiquing excessive government spending.
