Middle Class Tax Relief Act of 2010

[Guest human]

I did jacket? How come I am always the last one to know?

 

But can't you play the class warfare more, just for old times sakes.

PLEASE,PRETTY PLEASE.

 

 

 

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I recall that you wrote that you were doing database consulting for the Chinese and Brazilians. How is that going?

[wesmorgan]

The only relief you can call as such would have to be property tax lien sales if you have interest in investing.

[Guest Tea Party Patriot]

Property tax lien sales? The vultures are flying in to devour the mess we are in. What you people do not mention is debt, debt, DEBT. Are we planning to make our children pay for this mess? I say stop Obamacare, this stupid tax relief, and unemployment entitlements.

 

If the unemployed need money, then they should get it as a loan. That will entice them to look for a job. Too many people take advantage of entitlements. We need to raise tariffs, put in a flat simplified tax, and give breaks to businesses that invest in America.

 

Demand brings growth. No tax break is going to raise it. My two cents.

[Guest human]

The Democrats ARE still in charge. Even with the deal that Obama cut with my group, we are still under DEMOCRAT RULE/S.

 

 

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Property tax lien sales? The vultures are flying in to devour the mess we are in. What you people do not mention is debt, debt, DEBT. Are we planning to make our children pay for this mess? I say stop Obamacare, this stupid tax relief, and unemployment entitlements.

 

If the unemployed need money, then they should get it as a loan. That will entice them to look for a job. Too many people take advantage of entitlements. We need to raise tariffs, put in a flat simplified tax, and give breaks to businesses that invest in America.

 

Demand brings growth. No tax break is going to raise it. My two cents.

[Guest American4Progress]

Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR) said yesterday that President Obama put pressure on Democrats to vote for his tax cut compromise by saying it would be "the end of his presidency" if the deal didn't go through . "The White House is putting on tremendous pressure, making phone calls; the president's making phone calls saying that's the end of his presidency if he doesn't get this bad deal," DeFazio said on CNN.

 

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/12/15/dem-obama-says-not-passing-tax-deal-would-be-end-of-his-presidency/

 

Rep. participated in a press conference with Max Richtman, Executive Vice President of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare (NCPSSM), and other members of Congress to warn that the Senate passed tax cut deal will jeopardize the bedrock of U.S. retirement: the Social Security program. The Senate passed tax cut package would divert $112 billion from the Social Security Trust Fund, with a reduction in the FICA tax under the guise of providing economic stimulus and creating jobs. However, the bill also mandates that the government borrow $112 billion, much of it would likely come from China, to payback the Trust Fund. This sets a dangerous precedent that opens Social Security up to attacks from those seeking to dismantle or privatize it, and is not the type of investment that will create jobs or put people back to work.

 

The following is DeFazio’s statement at yesturdays’s press conference.

 

Today, the U.S. Senate voted to endorse the deal cut by President Obama and the Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, I think it’s a bad deal. It will add $858 billion to our deficit over the next two years. This is done under the premise that these sorts of tax cuts, trickle down tax cuts -- on estates over $10 million, incomes over $250,000, and 100% expensing for wealthy corporations who are sitting on huge piles of cash -- are necessary to put Americans back to work. I think we could have taken many more effective measures at much less cost to put Americans back to work.

 

But, one of the worst aspects of this bill is that it will take $112 billion from the Social Security Trust Fund and require that we borrow money, probably from China, to replace that money to make Social Security whole. It’s the first time in 75 years, since President Roosevelt created Social Security that opponents of the program are poised to undo the New Deal and turn it into a raw deal for America’s seniors, the taxpayers and working men and women. At the end of 2011, the Republicans will insist on extending the payroll tax holiday because the expiration of the holiday would increase taxes on working people. And to pay for the extension, it’s likely they will demand cuts in Social Security benefits.

 

That’s not the kind of security the American people who are dependent upon Social Security, or who will be dependent upon Social Security, need. This is a raw deal for seniors, taxpayers and working men and women. This bill sets a dangerous precedent and I will oppose it.

[Guest Stop this Madness]

Republican Rep. Pence Opposes Tax Deal, Calls For Permanent Extension Of Current Tax Rates

 

 

U.S. Congressman Mike Pence delivered the following remarks today on the floor of the House of Representatives:

 

“Since last summer, I’ve urged this Congress to prevent a tax increase that would affect every American in January of next year. So I rise with a heavy heart this morning to simply announce to my colleagues that I believe the short-term tax deal negotiated by the White House and Congressional leaders is a bad deal for taxpayers, will do little to create jobs and I cannot support it.

 

“Despite the fact that last November the American people did not vote for more deficits, more stimulus or more uncertainty in the tax code, that's just what this lame duck Congress is about to give them. You know, Madam Speaker, there is a reason why Article 1, Section 7 of the Constitution says that all bills for raising revenue are to originate here in the House of Representatives. It's because our Founders believed that when it comes to the people's taxes the people's House should always lead. The process is wrong, the policy’s wrong. We perpetuate the uncertainty that’s built into our tax code.

 

“Uncertainly is the enemy of our prosperity. And frankly, we can provide assistance to families struggling in this economy by making the hard choices to pay for it without adding to the national debt.

 

“The American people have spoken. Let’s say ‘no deal’ to this tax deal and get a better deal out of this Congress three weeks from today.”

[Guest human]

Kill the "Bill", Kill the PORK. Has to start some where. Good a time as any.

[Guest American4Progress]

At midnight last night, the House approved the White House tax cut deal , sending the bill to President Obama, who is expected to sign it today. The deal, already approved by Senate, extends the Bush tax cuts and unemployment benefits, and was hailed by both sides as a rare bipartisan achievement and "a prototype" for future bargains in the new Congress.

[Guest Confused in DC]

Property tax lien sales? The vultures are flying in to devour the mess we are in. What you people do not mention is debt, debt, DEBT. Are we planning to make our children pay for this mess? I say stop Obamacare, this stupid tax relief, and unemployment entitlements.

 

If the unemployed need money, then they should get it as a loan. That will entice them to look for a job. Too many people take advantage of entitlements. We need to raise tariffs, put in a flat simplified tax, and give breaks to businesses that invest in America.

 

Demand brings growth. No tax break is going to raise it. My two cents.

 

"If the unemployed need money, then they should get it as a loan."

What should they use as collateral if they're not homeowners, TPP?

[Guest LAW]

Many Republicans and conservative Tea Partiers believe that we should do away with unemployment insurance.

 

Unemployment insurance has many unintended effects. The indisputable fact is that unemployment benefits, despite a web of regulations, actually serve to discourage some individuals from taking jobs, especially when the benefits extend across years. - Mitt Romney

 

People don't want to be unemployed. They want to have real, full-time, permanent jobs with a future. That's what they want, and we need to create that climate in Washington, D.C. that encourages businesses to create those full-time, permanent jobs with a future, and all Shelley Berkeley and Harry Reid want to do is put a band-aid on this by extending unemployment, which really doesn't benefit anyone. What happens is of course that your skills stagnate. You become demoralized yourself, you know, feeling that I can't ever get a job, and these are not the solutions to the problem. We have real solutions, but they won't look at the real solutions. - Sharron Angle

 

Tea Party groups are now starting to see Republican leadership going against their no deficit pledge and they are not too happy about the deal that was struck.

 

Do not let Congress compromise with Obama. "The Compromise" is against everything the House Republican Leadership agreed to in the "Pledge to America." This type of behind closed door politics is not what "We the People" voted for in November. - Tea Party Patriots

 

After potential 2012 GOP presidential candidate Sarah Palin called the tax cut deal President Obama negotiated with Senate Republicans a "lousy deal," incoming House Speaker John Boehner brushed off the criticism and defended his vote in favor of the bill that President Obama is signing into law Friday.

 

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/12/17/boehner-defends-tax-deal-responds-to-palin/

[Guest Agitated in DC]

Today, the U.S. Department of Labor released yet another “weak,” “disappointing,” “ugly” jobs report showing that the unemployment rate ticked up to 9.8 percent in the month of November, leaving 15.1 million Americans out of work. With the unemployment rate stuck at or above 9.5 percent for 16 straight months – the longest stretch since the Great Depression - it’s clear to everyone that the last thing Washington should be doing right now is raising taxes – everyone, that is, except Democrats in Washington.

 

Today’s sobering jobs report comes just one day after House Democrats voted to impose a job-killing tax hike on American families and small businesses - a plan favored by their liberal allies - despite warnings by economists and small business owners that doing so would only make it harder to create jobs:

 

 

 

Last month, America sent a message to Washington Democrats that they will no longer tolerate a Congress that puts its own agenda ahead of the people’s top priorities – cutting spending and creating jobs. For months, Republicans have been calling on Democrats to allow an up-or-down vote on stopping all the tax hikes, but Democrats proved yesterday that they are still desperately clinging to the politically-driven, job-killing agenda the American people voted against – with devastating consequences for our nation’s economy. Enough is enough. As economist Douglas Holtz-Eakin notes in a National Review post “this [jobs report] is an alarm bell for the lame-duck Congress. No more games — extend all the tax cuts for two years, patch the AMT, and turn to cutting spending and tax reform.”

 

"“mall business owners, like Drew Greenblatt, would be hit too. When ABC News visited his 30-employee wire basket company in Baltimore earlier this year, he said an increase in the top tax rate would cost him about $40 thousand -- and likely at least one employee."

 

It's a false, BS dilemma: Yes, the reason it would personally cost him 40 grand is he makes big bucks to begin with. 30 employees? Come on.

He's a multi-millionaire. As far as "... it costing him at least one employee?" Nope. Don't believe that either, because that would reduce his bottom line in the number of products sold.

[Guest The Comedy Store]

I love hearing rich people whine about paying taxes: "I HAD TO PAY 600,000 DOLLARS IN TAXES LAST YEAR!!!" Really, how much did you make?

"Well, I netted 4.6 million, but that's not the point!"

 

Yes it is: don't expect a homeless Vietnam veteran to shed a tear for you - you're living the American dream, so shut your pie-hole.

[Guest HUMAN :) :) :)]

The Bush Tax Program has just been signed. Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Hey! Democrats; How are you going to pay for the health care Law now that the Bush tax Program has been extended?

 

You had to do away with Raising taxes, ALL the Bush Tax hikes HAD to go, and cutting 500 billion from Social Security?

 

This next congress HAS too trim that law down alot. hummmmmmm!

[Guest The Glamourous Life]

The Bush Tax Program has just been signed. Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Hey! Democrats; How are you going to pay for the health care Law now that the Bush tax Program has been extended?

 

You had to do away with Raising taxes, ALL the Bush Tax hikes HAD to go, and cutting 500 billion from Social Security?

 

This next congress HAS too trim that law down alot. hummmmmmm!

 

What a great victory for the cash-strapped billionaires that had to have that extra 4% tax cut!

Yeahh!!!

Team America!!!

[Guest LAW]

Our President has the wisdom Solomon, but lacks the will of Dr. King. Many people that got him elected are disappointed. At least people without jobs that are still looking will have a less stressful Christmas. I am hopeful that it will stimulate our economy. Otherwise, many good public programs will be thrown by the wayside.

 

Remarks by the President and the Vice President Before Signing the Middle-Class Tax Cuts Bill

South Court Auditorium

 

4:00 P.M. EST

 

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you all very, very much. Please be seated.

 

Ladies and gentlemen, this is a -- I wasn’t going say, a big deal, but an important deal. (Laughter.) I can no longer say “big deal.” (Laughter.) Thank god, my mother wasn’t around.

 

The famed 18th century British statesman, Edmund Burke, once said, “All government, indeed every human benefit and enjoyment, every virtue, and every prudent act, is founded on compromise and barter.” Today, we have a crystal clear example of what he meant.

 

This package -- this package is a result of leaders from both sides coming together to act on behalf of the American people at a time they need it most. I want to begin by applauding Senator Mitch McConnell, and the other Republican leaders, who like their Democratic counterparts who are here today, were willing to take issue with some of their own party and to do what was, in their view, necessary in order to move the country forward.

 

That’s what the American people expect of all of us, especially in these times. And that’s what we’ve done here. It means accepting some things we don’t like in order to get the job done for Americans as needs to be done.

 

We were put in office amid the deepest recession this country has seen since the Great Depression. We were put here to protect and -- protect and rebuild the middle class. And throughout the process, we’re working with two principles in mind -- grow the economy and support working-class families. And that’s what we fought hard to do.

 

And I stand here today to say, in my view, our fight has paid off. Most economists, many of whom are in this room, will tell you this plan will grow our economy in the next year. And it’s going to help millions of families keep their jobs, if they have one, and keep their unemployment benefits if they don’t, and keep their tax relief, and keep their kids in school as well.

 

All while keeping our economic recovery moving in the right direction, providing immediate -- an immediate economic jolt, and giving more than 150 million Americans help where they need it most, in their paychecks, in their wallets. I believe it was the right thing to do.

 

This is an example of what can happen when you have a President who knows what needs to be done and acts tenaciously to make sure it happens. The President, wholeheartedly -- wholeheartedly committed to serving the middle class. And that’s what happens when you have a President who knows in his gut that the middle class is the backbone of the American people, and that a full economic recovery will only happen if we have -- if they, the middle class, have the support they need in order to succeed.

 

Ladies and gentlemen, the President of the United States, Barack Obama. (Applause.)

 

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, everybody. Thank you. Thank you so much. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Thank you everybody. Please have a seat.

 

Good afternoon, everybody. Before I get started, I just want to acknowledge some of the extraordinary people who did some extraordinary work in a very short period of time. And I’m going to start with somebody who has been a champion for the middle class, but has also been just an extraordinary partner on every important initiative in this administration -- my friend, Joe Biden, the Vice President. (Applause.)

 

I want to acknowledge and thank Senator Mitch McConnell and the rest of the Republican leadership in the Senate; Dave Camp, Republican over in the House, for their willingness, as Joe indicated, to do what was right for the country, even though it caused occasional political discomfort. I especially want to thank the folks who are here -- Dick Durbin, Max Baucus, Danny Davis, Allyson Schwartz, Rob Andrews -- part of a broader team that worked very diligently both in the House and the Senate on the Democratic side to make this happen.

 

And we’ve got a bunch of other members of Congress who are here, as well as activists and economists and business leaders and people who generally recognize that at this critical juncture, we’ve got to think about what’s best to grow the economy and what’s best to put people back to work.

 

We are here with some good news for the American people this holiday season. By a wide bipartisan margin, both Houses of Congress have now passed a package of tax relief that will protect the middle class, that will grow our economy, and will create jobs for the American people. Not only do I want to thank all the leaders here today, but I want to thank mayors and governors from across the country who couldn’t be here today, and all who worked together to get this done.

 

First and foremost, the legislation I’m about to sign is a substantial victory for middle-class families across the country. They’re the ones hit hardest by the recession we’ve endured. They’re the ones who need relief right now. And that’s what is at the heart of this bill.

 

This bipartisan effort was prompted by the fact that tax rates for every American were poised to automatically increase on January 1st. If that had come to pass, the average middle-class family would have had to pay an extra $3,000 in taxes next year. That wouldn’t have just been a blow to them -- it would have been a blow to our economy just as we’re climbing out of a devastating recession.

 

I refused to let that happen. And because we acted, it’s not going to. In fact, not only will middle-class Americans avoid a tax increase, but tens of millions of Americans will start the New Year off right by opening their first paycheck to see that it’s actually larger than the one they get right now. Over the course of 2011, 155 million workers will receive tax relief from the new payroll tax cut included in this bill -– about $1,000 for the average family.

 

This is real money that’s going to make a real difference in people’s lives. And I would not have signed this bill if it didn’t include other extensions of relief that were also set to expire -– relief that’s going to help families cover the bills, parents raise their children, students pay for college, and business owners to take the reins of the recovery and propel this economy forward.

 

As soon as I sign this legislation, 2 million Americans looking for work who lost their jobs through no fault of their own can know with certainty that they won’t lose their emergency unemployment insurance at the end of this month. Over the past few weeks, 600,000 Americans have been cut off from that lifeline. But with my signature, states can move quickly to reinstate their benefits –- and we expect that in almost all states, they’ll get them in time for Christmas.

 

Eight million college students who otherwise would have faced a tuition hike as soon as next semester will instead continue to have access to a $2,500 tax credit to afford their studies.

 

Twelve million families with 24 million children will benefit from extensions of the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit. And when combined with the payroll tax cut, 2 million American families who otherwise would have lived in poverty next year will instead be lifted out of it. (Applause.)

 

And millions of entrepreneurs who have been waiting to invest in their businesses will receive new tax incentives to help them expand, buy new equipment, or make upgrades -- freeing up other money to hire new workers.

 

Putting more money in the pockets of families most likely to spend it, helping businesses invest and grow -- that’s how we’re going to spark demand, spur hiring, and strengthen our economy in the New Year.

 

Now, candidly speaking, there are some elements of this legislation that I don’t like. There are some elements that members of my party don’t like. There are some elements that Republicans here today don’t like. That’s the nature of compromise -– yielding on something each of us cares about to move forward on what all of us care about. And right now, what all of us care about is growing the American economy and creating jobs for the American people. Taken as a whole, that’s what this package of tax relief is going to do. It’s a good deal for the American people. This is progress. And that’s what they sent us here to achieve.

 

There will be moments, I am certain, over the next couple of years, in which the holiday spirit won’t be as abundant as it is today. (Laughter.) Moreover, we’ve got to make some difficult choices ahead when it comes to tackling the deficit. In some ways, this was easier than some of the tougher choices we’re going to have to make next year. There will be times when we won’t agree, and we’ll have to work through those times together. But the fact is I don’t believe that either party has cornered the market on good ideas. And I want to draw on the best thinking from both sides.

 

So wherever we can, whenever we can, it makes sense for our country’s success and our children’s future to work with people in both parties who are willing to come to the table for the hard work of moving our economy and our country forward. What happened with this economic package was a good example of that. A bipartisan group made up of Senators Baucus and Kyl and Representatives Van Hollen and Camp sat down with -- Secretary Geithner is here today and Director Jack Lew of the Office of Management and Budget to begin negotiations in good faith. Leaders like Nancy Pelosi, John Boehner, Harry Reid, and Mitch, other members who are here together worked to bring this bill across the finish line.

 

And the final product proves when we can put aside the partisanship and the political games, when we can put aside what’s good for some of us in favor of what’s good for all of us, we can get a lot done. And if we can keep doing it, if we can keep that spirit, I’m hopeful that we won’t just reinvigorate this economy and restore the American Dream for all who work for it. I’m also hopeful that we might refresh the American people’s faith in the capability of their leaders to govern in challenging times, belief in the capacity of their institutions in this town to deliver in a rapidly changing world, and, most of all, confidence that our best days as a nation are still ahead of us.

 

So to all of you who worked so diligently on this issue, thank you very much. To those on my staff who were working night and day, and on the Senate and House staffs in both parties who were working so hard, we’re very grateful to you. And with that, let me sign this bill to make sure that people are seeing a bigger paycheck come January. (Applause.)

 

END

4:17 P.M. EST

[Luke_Wilbur]

As the Rolling Stones say "You can't always get what you want. You sometimes get what you need."

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toiM1B6E2ww

 

I hope we see more bipartisan support and less extremism. Divided We Fall. United We Stand.

[Guest Fedup]

I disagree. We are selling our country out to the New World Order.

[Guest JTA]

Oh and don't forget Arizona Republican Senator Kyl boosted the amount ineligible for the estate tax from 7.5 MILLION to 10 MILLION dollars, because really, what two children of the wealthy are going to be able to live on an inheritance of a measly 7.5 million dollars?

THANK YOU SENATOR KYL!!!

 

Daddy Warbucks

USA

[Guest Conformist]

The Bush Tax Program has just been signed. Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Hey! Democrats; How are you going to pay for the health care Law now that the Bush tax Program has been extended?

 

You had to do away with Raising taxes, ALL the Bush Tax hikes HAD to go, and cutting 500 billion from Social Security?

 

This next congress HAS too trim that law down alot. hummmmmmm!

 

Well I agree; why should children who aren't born into a well off family be treated to something as luxurious and senseless as health care?

Who cares if they get leukemia (or anything for that matter)? Sorry son, you were born into the wrong family, and now you'll have to die.

 

America, the beautiful.