Tag Archives: President Bush tax cuts

Tax Mess Cometh, So Does Blame

BY STEVE BELL

      At the end of this calendar year, the so-called Bush Tax Cuts of 2001 and 2003 expire.  In order for any of the cuts to continue, Congress must pass a bill the President will sign.  So far, so simple. 

      President Obama proposed in his budget that all Bush tax cuts for filers over $200,000 (single) or $250,000 (joint) be allowed to expire as in current law.  He also proposed that all of the rest of the tax cuts for middle class earners and other workers be continued.  By all accounts, his party faithful in Congress by and large agree with this approach, both as policy and as good politics.

      The questions that political and legislative analysts must answer are three-fold:  1)  how will any of these tax cuts continue, with the adversarial atmosphere in both the House and Senate; 2)  what procedure will allow Democrats to pick and choose which tax cuts continue and which expire; 3)  who will get the blame when the tax mess hits the political fan.

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House and Senate, Venus and Mars

BY JOHN FEEHERY
From CNN
 
When the Founding Fathers decided to create a bicameral legislative branch, they were trying to make things difficult for the federal government to grab power from the people.
What the Founding Fathers may not have foreseen was how much the House and the Senate would grow to dislike and distrust each other. Why is this important now? Democrats in the House may have to take the political risk of voting to pass the health care bill based on assurances from the Senate that the upper chamber will eventually modify the law to change some things House Democrats don’t want.