General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsAre the Bush Tax Cuts still set to expire 12/31/2011?
Certainly will be helpful to deficit reduction providing they do. This one single piece of legislation caused irreparable harm.
Are you aware of any repug house members trying to extend them again? They should go away forever even if it raises my own taxes.
FreakinDJ
(17,644 posts)Jack Sprat
(2,500 posts)I mean they are set to expire the end of this year, right or wrong?
spanone
(142,053 posts)discopants
(535 posts)yet before the next President is sworn in.
Jack Sprat
(2,500 posts)I thought it was this year's end. What a bummer! I should have known it was far too quiet to be this year. I should have known when I failed to hear the babies squalling on the right.
krucial
(206 posts)I have no confidence that the Democrats and Obama are going to let the rich folks tax break expire.
Obama always talk big, an then caves in at last minute to extreme pressure from the Republicans.
We have seen this played out over and over the last 3 years
soryang
(3,308 posts)The Bush tax cuts will be extended, but social security, medicaid, and medicare will be gouged mercilessly by "democratic" leaders in a "grand bargain" which they can't wait to deliver for their wall street banker puppeteers.
Motown_Johnny
(22,308 posts)I don't think there is any backing down from this fight.
ozone_man
(4,825 posts)that threatens social security? Obama will go down as the president who bankrupted SS and the country.
Recovered Repug
(1,518 posts)The Obama Tax Cuts are due to expire next year.
sad sally
(2,627 posts)When asked about the role of the Bush tax cuts in terms of job creation Obama said, It doesnt, which is why I was opposed to it and Im still opposed to it. The issue here is not whether I think that the tax cuts for the wealthy are a good or smart thing to do. Ive said repeatedly that I think theyre not a smart thing to do, particularly because weve got to borrow money, essentially, to pay for them.
Everyone who isnt a blind right wing ideologue who isnt in total denial of economic reality knows that extending the Bush tax cuts is not going to spur job creation. It is not logical to believe that keeping taxes at their current levels is going to have some sort of magical effect on job creation, but Republicans have long been believers in the dream of trickle down fairy dust. The myth of the magic of trickledown economics is a whimsical cover to story to hide the redistribution of wealth in this country from the bottom to the top. Trickledown economics is behind the Republican rationale for keeping the Bush tax cuts, and Obama is essentially saying that he made the choice to save the fragile economic recovery by giving the Republicans something that he knows is an expensive fools errand.
While the Presidents consideration of those in the direst of need is commendable, it will not be easy for him to argue that these tax cuts are unnecessary now that he has agreed to extend them. If the economy starts humming along again, Republicans will ignore reality and give all the credit to the tax cuts. Democrats and Obama will give credit the stimulus and the traditional increase in government spending during a recession.
The point is that that this compromise likely will make Obamas future battle with the Republicans on taxes and tax cuts even more difficult. The threat to the economic survival of two million Americans forced Obama to make this deal, but both he and the Republicans are gearing up for a total war on the issues of taxes, the tax code, and the deficit. While America is thinking short term, Obama is focusing on the long term big picture. A presidents time in office is so limited that long term thinking presidents are rare. It will be interesting to see if America will accept a president that has a long term strategy in this age of instant gratification politics.
http://www.politicususa.com/en/obama-tax-npr?du
GeorgeGist
(25,570 posts)
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