Democrats Break Ranks to Oppose Obama & Pelosi's Job-Killing Tax Increases

Democrats Break Ranks to Oppose Obama & Pelosi's Job-Killing Tax Increases

AUGUST 27, 2010

DEMOCRATS' IMPENDING TAX INCREASES

Unless Democrats take action, hard working Americans will face the largest tax increase in the nation’s history on January 1, 2011.  To date, Democrats have done nothing to stop the $3.8 trillion tax hike, leaving small business owners and families uncertain about their futures, and hesitant to spend, lend or invest.  With unemployment hovering near 10 percent, tax increases could not come at a worse possible time.

Rather than providing economic certainty, Democrats continue to play politics, threatening to levy higher taxes on some but not others.  This strategy provided fuel for the economic uncertainty that has helped to paralyze any prospect of an economic recovery.  Small business owners, not knowing what new government imposed costs tomorrow will bring, are reluctant to hire.  And if nothing is done, huge tax increases will be imposed on every taxpayer in the nation, taking money out of the hands of middle class families and small business owners and putting it into the pockets of Washington.  In recent weeks, many Democrats have bucked their leadership by publicly stating that in the midst of an economic contraction, Americans need tax relief—not job-killing tax increases.  Democratic leaders should heed those warnings and ensure that no tax increase occurs at this fragile moment in the life of our nation’s economic history.

 

DEMOCRATS OPENLY OPPOSING THE OBAMA-PELOSI-REIDTAX INCREASE

“I think we're at a very fragile point in the economic recovery. It's not as robust as we need it to be, and that means that timing is very important. Allowing the tax cuts to expire on any income group right now, I think, would be counterproductive and could do damage to a fragile economy.”

—Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), July 23, 2010

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“Allowing the 2001 and 2003 tax rates to expire at the end of 2010 before our economy fully recovers may significantly hinder job growth.  Returning to the pre-200l tax policies could also reduce our ability to bring our deficit under control over the long term by limiting economic expansion during this crucial period.”

—Reps. Bobby Bright (D-AL) and Mike McMahon (D-NY), January 21, 2010

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“The general rule of thumb would be you’d not want to do tax changes, tax increases… until the recovery is on more solid ground.”

—Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-ND), July 21, 2010

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“We don’t need to raise taxes now… If we’re going to deal with those things (tax increases), we ought to wait until the economy has a full head of steam going—jobs are being created, several hundred thousand a month.”

 —Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN), July 11, 2010

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“My fear is that not extending those tax cuts is equivalent to instituting a tax increase at a very critical and challenging time for the economy… Small businesses are holding back and I think we need to give them some confidence.”

 —Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), August 10, 2010

 

ACROSS THE BOARD TAX INCREASES 

President Obama, Speaker Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader Reid and the rest of Democrat leadership often contend that they will only increase taxes on high-income earners.  However, the Democrats have done nothing to ensure that taxes on middle class Americans, including small business owners, will not increase.  As it stands, the Democrats’ impending $3.8 trillion tax increase will impact every taxpaying American during the midst of the worst economy in decades and could incite a potential double-dip recession.  The Republican staff of the House Ways and Means Committee has analyzed the impacts of the tax increases and found that these increases would have dramatic effects on hard-working families across the nation.  A family of four, for instance, with an annual income of $50,000 would face a tax increase of more than $2,000.  If Democrat leaders ignore their own colleagues and allow the across-the-board tax increases to occur, the impact will be felt by everyone—not just large corporations and wealthy individuals.