Obama Urges Middle-Class Tax Cut Extension

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20120211-701180.html

Obama Urges Middle-Class Tax Cut Extension
By Kate Gibson

NEW YORK (MarketWatch)--President Barack Obama urged Congress to extend a payroll-tax cut, with the clock ticking on the time remaining for lawmakers to act or have taxes rise for millions of working Americans.

"If Congress refuses to act, middle-class taxes will go up. It's that simple," Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio and Internet address about the tax cut, which expires at the end of February and amounts to roughly $1,000 a year for the typical family, or $40 a paycheck.

In December, lawmakers agreed on a two-month extension of the tax cut. But legislation to extend it would also renew jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed and stop a 27% reduction in Medicare payments to physicians. The measure costs more than $150 billion and Congress needs to figure out to cover the expenditures.

In the Republican reply, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell targeted Obama's not-yet-released budget, saying the president's fiscal plan likely would impede job creation with a tax hike while not addressing the nation's debt.

(more at above link)

He's trying! The House has no desire to do anything but make the American working class suffer economic hardship, and get the president out of their White House...



http://www.zazzle.com/sketch_etch_mitt_romney_drawing_board_of_positions_tshirt-235036760666521488?rf=238107662556833486

I love your etch a sketch!

They were written that way ten years earlier, so it was no surprise to anyone. (Neither was the impending death of Senator Kennedy.)

Obama campaigned on ending the Bush tax cuts (thereby making not Joe the not plumber famous).

A tax law repealing the Bush tax cuts--or at least specifying what would happen when they expired--at any time between January 2009 and January 2011. However, nothing was done until after mid-terms November, 2010 And then, Obama negotiated directly with Mitch McConnell to extend the tax cuts, supposedly in exchange for ONE extension of unemployment benefits.

Funny thing was, though, this took place in December 2011, when the Democrats still controlled both houses of Congress.

Moreover, both tax cuts and umemployment benefits, being budget items, could have been addressed by reconcilation, which would have required only 50 Senators and Biden. Yet, Obama still bypassed the Senatore and made a very unusual compromise with Mitch McConnell while Democrats still controlled Congress.

We were never given a satisfactory explanation for that.

So now, Republicans control the House and Obama is campaigning for President, blaming Republicans for everything connected with the economy. And, knowing full well there is no chance in hell they will compromise on eliminating the Obama tax cuts ONLY for the wealthy, Obama is once again campaigning on the same thing he campaigned on in 2008.

I gave him points for campaigning on this identical tax issue in 2008. Please forgive me if giving him points for campaigning on it this time is very difficult for me.

of the rich, but on the other shoe, I'd sure appreciate to see him bring it to fruition, and not make any deals... another sellout would destroy me as a Dem.




http://www.zazzle.com/sketch_etch_mitt_romney_drawing_board_of_positions_tshirt-235036760666521488?rf=238107662556833486

except maybe taxes on the poor, which DID increase after the McConnell-Obama deal to which my prior post refers.

Remember, Obama took office with an overwhelming majority in the House and 60 in the Senate Democratic caucus, plus a huge popular sentiment for him and for Democrats and against Bush and Republicans. With the right moves, he could have accomplished almost anything.

That particular configuration is very unlikely to occur again any time soon because Dummya was one of the worst presidents in all of U.S. history. Therefore, it may be a while before either Party gets that degree of pushback from voters. AND, absent that kind of pushback, elections seem get closer and closer every time. (Though Democrats did get a fair amount of pushback in 2010. imo, that was because they did not deliver the dramatic change they promised.)

Given the last four years, Obama certainly will not have that configuration in his second term.

If I let myself, I could cry about Blown Opportunities.

But, I am in a blue state. No one will notice how I vote. But, DD, you are in a swing state., so you will have to weigh things very carefully before you decide to stop being a Democrat.

Not saying what you should or should do, just saying weigh very carefully.