There has been much division in the Democrat Party for sometime now but with November so close, those disagreements are amplified. Here are just a handful of House Democrats speaking out against raising taxes:
Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT): "The economy has by no means fully recovered, so my bias is that those high-end tax cuts should be extended."
Rep. Bobby Bright (D-AL): “I don’t care if it’s the wealthiest of the wealthy, you don’t raise their taxes,” he said. “In a recession, you don’t tax, burden and restrict. The economy is like a ship, and if you sink the ship, all the good you might do goes down with it.”
Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA): “We are managing a very fragile recovery, and now is not the time to raise taxes on anyone. The timing is wrong and we should not do anything at this juncture that could jeopardize or slow the nation’s economic growth.”
Rep. Gary Peters (D-MI): “Extending the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts for all earners is the right thing to do as anything less jeopardizes economic recovery.”
Rep. Harry Mitchell (D-AZ): “I strongly believe that this is the wrong time to let key tax cuts expire. We need to encourage investment, not discourage it by letting these cuts expire. Extending these cuts would bring some much needed certainty and predictability to our tax code."
Rep. Michael McMahon (D-NY): "We're not creating jobs, and raising taxes now would not be a great idea."
AP Reports:
Congressional Democrats are confronting deep divisions in their nervous ranks over whether to support President Barack Obama's plan to raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans — or just punt the entire matter until after voters go to the polls Nov. 2.
Democratic leaders committed to Obama's proposal were to hear Wednesday from endangered lawmakers who fear that raising taxes on anyone in a weak economy could be politically lethal.
"Don't raise taxes in a recession," said Rep. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D.
Democratic leaders refused to say whether they were open to changing Obama's plan, or even commit to a vote before the balloting seven weeks off. Instead, they called House Democrats together Tuesday night to discuss a poll showing that extending tax cuts for middle-income earners was a winning strategy for the party.
Not everyone was convinced. A group of moderate and conservative House Democrats was collecting signatures on a letter calling for Democratic leaders to offer a bill extending tax cuts for all Americans. Broad tax cuts passed during the George W. Bush administration are due to expire at the end of the year.
"We are in listening mode," said Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, who heads the House Democrats' campaign committee.
Get more quotes from Democrats against tax increases here: "Democrats in Disarray."