Reid on Debt Downgrade: OK Now Let's Raise Taxes

Harry Reid
The Hill - Standard & Poor's decision to downgrade the nation's credit rating reinforces Democrats' call for increasing tax revenue, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Friday. In a statement, Reid said:
"The action by S&P reaffirms the need for a balanced approach to deficit reduction that combines spending cuts with revenue-raising measures like closing taxpayer-funded giveaways to billionaires, oil companies and corporate jet owners. This makes the work of the joint committee all the more important, and shows why leaders should appoint members who will approach the committee’s work with an open mind - instead of hardliners who have already ruled out the balanced approach that the markets and rating agencies like S&P are demanding. The credit rating firm said the recent plan to raise the debt limit while reducing the debt "falls short" of its expectations, but S&P also offered broader condemnations of America's political process. Read full story here: News New Mexico
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3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Perhaps Senator Reid is right. Maybe it's about time we stopped giving tax breaks to the ethanol industry, oil companies and small business owners. It wouldn't bother me if the 51%, who pay nothing, are also forced to put something in the kitty as well. A compromise should be reached by republicans and democrats. I have a perfect solution. There are trigger mechanisms in the current spending reduction agreement. If the committee of 12 can't agree, automatic cuts are implemented. Why can't they employ the same triggers in tax increases? Republicans insist tax increases will drive unemployment higher, the democrats deny this. Neither party wants higher unemployment. Taxes could be increased with a trigger mechanism in place that instantly reverses ALL tax increases should unemployment rises above the current level of 9.2%. They could even agree on a higher unemployment rate that would trigger a reversal in the tax increases. It would be interesting to see how both sides would react to such a proposed compromise. My instincts tell me that the democrats could care less if more people lose their jobs as long as the government is taking in more money to spend. They would be the most likely political party to reject such a compromise.

Anonymous said...

In the face of falling markets all get from leaders like Reid and Obama are party talking points. In December the president argued for extending the Bush tax cuts because it would be bad to raise taxes in a fragile economy. Since then the economy has worsened. What happened to the president's position that it would be bad to raise taxes in an even worse economy?

Anonymous said...

Senator Reid is completely out of touch with the people. No one wants to risk more jobs being lost. Many of us are nervous now. The only logical way to get us out of this mess is through entitlement reform and slashing discretionary spending. Evidently Reid feels the democratic party's future is contingent upon taking more from wealthy people and paying federal bureaucrats fat salaries to distribute the balance to Americans who make less. What a country.

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