The conflict between Democrats trying to extend your payroll tax cut and Republicans trying to raise YOUR taxes continues. Senate Democrats offered a compromise that is better than I expected from Leg Hound Harry Reid. This will explain the proposal. In addition here is video of Obama’s address to the nation today and video of Cenk Uygur and Alan Grayson on the subject.
A Senate Democratic aide told CNN Monday that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will announce a new proposal to extend the payroll tax cut before it expires at the end of the year…
…Last week, Senate Republicans blocked progress on a Democratic plan that would assess a surtax on income over $1 million.
The new proposal Reid will unveil Monday still contains a reduced version of that tax provision, the Democratic aide said, but calls for it to expire after 10 years.
In addition, the Democratic plan still includes cutting the payroll tax paid by workers from the current rate of 4.2% to 3.1%.
That would mean a family making $50,000 a year would save about $1,500, according to Democrats. If the tax cut is not extended, the rate would go up to 6.2% and cost that same family an additional $1,000 next year, Democrats say.
However, the new Democratic proposal drops a provision in the measure defeated last week that would also expand the payroll tax cut to employers, according to the Senate Democratic aide.
Cutting out that provision drops the total cost of the measure to $180 billion from the $265 billion of last week’s proposal, the aide said.
In addition to the so-called "millionaire’s surtax," the new proposal would be paid for by spending cuts to non-health mandatory programs that were discussed during negotiations by the congressional "super committee" that failed to reach a deficit reduction deal last month, according to the aide.
Democrats will include a provision from a Senate Republican measure that would prevent millionaires from receiving food stamps and unemployment assistance, the aide said.
According to the Senate Democratic aide, putting a 10-year "sunset" on the surtax for millionaires was a response to Republican criticism that the original proposal amounted to a permanent tax increase for a temporary economic stimulus plan.
Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pennsylvania, is the lead sponsor of the Democratic plan to be formally introduced in the Senate Monday, the aide said.
A top Senate Republican aide, who had not yet seen the proposal, criticized the broad outline because it still includes a tax increase on wealthy "job creators."… [emphasis added]
Inserted from <CNN>
I fully expect Republicans to block this, because they only want tax cuts for the rich and corporate criminals. They want to raise YOUR taxes.
Here is President Obama’s speech this morning.
It’s a pleasure to see him calling the Republicans on their lies.
In his Current TV debut of The Young Turks, Cenk Uygur covered this story and interviewed Alan Grayson.
Both Cenk and Alan tell the truth in no uncertain terms. I have no doubt Cenk’s new show will be a valuable addition to progressive news.
One last thing. I was sorry to see people at more than one location complain that this program will do nothing to help them. For the record, I’m disabled and cannot work, so I have no skin in this game at all. Nevertheless, shouldn’t those of us whom it will not help fight fore the sake of those whom it will?
13 Responses to “Payroll Tax Cut Extension: The Next Round”
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…, “For the record, I’m disabled and cannot work, so I have no skin in this game at all. Nevertheless, shouldn’t those of us whom it will not help fight fore the sake of those whom it will?”…..
Damn Skippy! I know I am, Tom! I think taxes on the working poor and middle class are too high to begin with so anything that will ease that burden, even by a grand, is all the more better! And that also means those of us that do not pay that burden any longer should fight that much harder for those still having to carry the weight.
I’m unemployed but I feel myself to have a stake in this as some day I hope to be employed. I think we all have a stake in what’s good for our neighbors.
You both are making my point. Thank you.
The Democratic plan is a step in the right direction, but just think how great it will be when we regain control of the House and regain a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate…we’ll be able to pass not only a better bill for the working class, but also enact a 10% SURCHARGE on incomes of the richest 2%! Deficit shrunken dramatically; middle class wages greatly improved so greater demand is created; unemployment goes way down; the economy is healthy again! All because the rich start paying what they should have paid all along! This is not a pipe dream – these goals can and WILL be met if protesters OCCUPY voting booths next fall and sweep in a large progressive majority—it’s something we all must work for!!!
That’s going to take some doing Jack. I need to check the math, but I think that a filibuster proof majority in the Senate is not possible in 2012, because not enough Republicans face elections in 2012.
Looking forward to everyone’s thoughts on Pres. Obama’s Ossawatamie “Teddy Roosevelt Redux” Speech today. It was stellar! (And I’m not just saying that because I’m in the KCMO metro.) Income inequality is the club he’s going to use to hit the repubicans over the head again and again and again.
Well Nameless, I’ll hold for now, because there is an article on that subject going up in about an hour. 🙂
It’s dumb to consider any tax cuts when we are 15 trillion in debt. Like extending the Bush tax cuts, all it will do is add to that 15 trillion dollar debt. I wonder when government leader will guide the people to the idea, that we have to pay our debt?
Not if the tax cuts are at leased balanced by revenue increases. The best way to pay down the debt it to increase revenue by stimulating the economy and returning to the pre-Bush tax rates. The economic weakness we suffer is demand side, not supply side.
My morning Chuckle — Democrats will include a provision from a Senate Republican measure that would prevent millionaires from receiving food stamps and unemployment assistance.
Ok, somebody’s pulling my leg, right?! Has this ever happened that a millionaire has tried getting unemployment benefits and food stamps? If they have, they are the lowest of the low and should be charged with fraud!
From the article — “A top Senate Republican aide, who had not yet seen the proposal, criticized the broad outline because it still includes a tax increase on wealthy “job creators.”… Somebody really needs to beat it into the Republican/Teabaggers that the 1% are NOT job creators. They need to talk to billionaire Nick Hanauer and learn a few lessons in basic economics!
Obama — TC, you’re right. He called the Republican/Teabaggers out for saying one thing and doing another. He called them on their lies and duplicity. It will be interesting to see just what happens.
Cenk Uygur — Having never seen Cenk Uygur before, I like this guy and I like Grayson. They seem to understand the economics. Cenk mentioned Nick Hanauer’s op-ed piece where he, as a 1%er, says he does not create jobs. Jobs are created by the middle class spending loop. Cenk mentioned near the end of the clip 2 options — the Democratic option with a modest 3.2% tax increase on millionaires and billionaires, and the Republican/Teabagger option to put a pay freeze for federal employees in place til 2015 and cut 200,000 federal jobs. One solves a problem and the other adds to the problem! It doesn’t take an economist to see the effect this will have on the economy. I also liked that Cenk referred to the Republican/Teabaggers as “Thought puppets for the rich”.
TomCat — “For the record, I’m disabled and cannot work, so I have no skin in this game at all. Nevertheless, shouldn’t those of us whom it will not help fight fore the sake of those whom it will?”
I couldn’t agree with you more. When I first read your comment, I immediately thought of this short piece that I have printed out and pinned by my desk:
First they came for the communists,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a Jew.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me.
-Martin Niemöller
When we, as the human race, learn that we are all connected and need to help eachother, we will have achieved a monumental accomplishment. But it really shouldn’t have been all that big had we set ‘me’ aside and considered ‘we’.
One last comment — The picture of the balls at the top of your piece, they need to be bigger and a whole lot more of them so that if the Dems lose a few, they have a ready supply to use when dealing with the moronic Republican/Teabaggers!
This is an excellent piece!
I got a laugh out of that too. I thought it was great humor by the Democrats to put the Republicans on Front Street for even proposing something so absurd.
I thought you’d like Cenk and Alan.
Thanks for injecting Niemöller.
“Truth” is an alien language to the RepublicanTs.
They know what it means. If they didn’t they couldn’t evade it so well.