Congressional Leaders Spend The Day Grandstanding On Tax-Cut Issues

Mike Godfrey, Tax-News.com, Washington

16 February 2001

With Congress about to take a week's break, Democratic leaders yesterday nailed their colours to the mast in demanding a tax-cutting package of only half the size wanted by President Bush; and two Republican senators are saying the President's package is too expensive.

Despite the position taken by the two renegade Republicans, James M. Jeffords of Vermont and Lincoln D. Chafee of Rhode Island, Senator Trent Lott of Mississippi, the majority leader, was confident that the package would survive: "I have no doubt that the will of the American people will have an effect on how we vote," said Mr. Lott, "I believe that when the time comes, there will be more than enough votes there."

The current Democratic consensus is for a 10-year, $750 billion tax cut. Tom Daschle and Richard Gephardt, the respective Senate and House Democratic leaders, said at a joint news conference yesterday that Mr Bush's package would return the US to a period of high deficits and fiscal irresponsibility. "If the projections are off by even a fraction, the president's plan will send us right back to the high interest rates, high unemployment and high debt we saw at the end of the last Bush administration," said Mr Daschle. "That is too risky a gamble to take."

Senator Daschle, said that with the Republican defections Democrats might be able to cut back on the White House proposal: "I think this is far more open an opportunity for us than many have realized," Mr. Daschle said.

Under the Democrats plans, the remainder of the anticipated $2.7 trillion 10-year surplus would be divided between new spending and debt reduction, and wheeled out family groups, as had Mr Bush last week, to prove their point that cuts should be targeted at poorer people only. Joe Corzine, a former co-chairman of Goldman, Sachs & Company who earned about $20 million in investment income last year, said: "Maybe some of you will think I'm crazy for protesting, but frankly I don't think it's right. Our nation has higher priorities. I don't need a break but Luwaunna does." Luwaunna Adams, a single mother working as a secretary, said that her tax cut would amount to $2 a week.

This gave the Republicans an easy target, and Senator Phil Gramm of Texas duly obliged at yet another press conference, saying: "Now we know Democrats love capitalism and hate capitalists and have a great distaste for rich people, but we think everybody ought to get a tax cut."

.

Recommended

Write a comment