Absent serious action by Congress, all US taxpayers will be sending more money to Washington come New Year’s Day, with the Bush tax cuts set to expire.
Yes, the House and Senate have both passed legislation to address the problem — but only one body was serious.
Last week, the GOP-led House OK’d a bill to extend all the tax cuts. Not a bad idea, given that the economy remains comatose.
But Senate Democrats opted to play games. Late last month, they voted 51-48 for what they called a “tax cut.”
Trouble is, it was really a tax hike.
True, their vote would extend a portion of the Bush tax cuts. But it covers only those making $200,000 or less.
Folks with higher incomes — including hundreds of thousands of small-business owners (i.e., America’s job creators) — would still be socked with hikes on Jan. 1.
Calling their vote a victory for the middle class, the Dems are echoing the class-warfare rhetoric central to President Obama’s re-election campaign. In the Senate, they’re blaming Republicans for a lack of serious action to stave off “Taxmaggedon” — claiming the GOP is holding the economy “hostage” to protect “tax cuts for the rich.”
But who believes them? After all, they haven’t even bothered to pass a budget — a core legislative duty — in three years.
And now their “tax cut” that’s really a hike. Democrats can keep their “favors.”