Michael Bloomberg: Obama Should Veto Any Extension Of The Bush Tax Cuts

[peacepipe]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/0...n_1752153.html

WASHINGTON -- New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is arguing once again that all the Bush-era tax cuts, including those on the first $250,000 in annual income, should be allowed to expire at the end of 2012.

Bloomberg said it was folly to argue that the economy was in too fragile a state to absorb such a hike. In a phone interview with The Huffington Post, he also made the case that voters would reward President Barack Obama with a landslide victory in November if he called the Republicans' bluff on the matter. "What Obama should do is say he’s going to veto any change to the end of the expiration of the Bush era tax cuts for everybody, and I feel very strongly about the everybody because you don’t want to split the country -- that’s not what America is all about," said Bloomberg.

"Obama would win this election going away if he’d stand up and say, 'I’m gonna do this,' and then turn to Republicans and say, 'You know, you didn’t want any more revenues ... I just outfoxed you. Now work with me on cutting expenses, and we’ll actually balance the budget in 10 years, and we’ll do it responsibly.'"

Bloomberg first made the case for a temporary extension of the Bush-era tax cuts in the summer of 2010. But for the past year or so, his position has been that the rates should revert to Clinton-era levels for incomes across the board, and that the savings could be used to offset a cut in business taxes.

music to my ears. I think its 60-40 GWB tax cuts expire in their entirety.

[cutthemdown]

Yep let them expire and take complete ownership of the economy. I say go for it.

[Pony Boy]

Bloomberg also said Mayors ‘Are Wrong’ to Ban Chick-fil-A, he's sure been on the “bully pulpit” lately ......

[cutthemdown]

But calling it the repub bluff is funny. The whole Bush tax cut issue is Obama's bluff. He doesn't actually want to repeal them on his own. He doesn't want to own them.

[peacepipe]

Originally Posted by Pony Boy

Bloomberg also said Mayors ‘Are Wrong’ to Ban Chick-fil-A, he's sure been on the “bully pulpit” lately ......

he's right. they are wrong for trying to ban CFA.

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

Originally Posted by Pony Boy

Bloomberg also said Mayors ‘Are Wrong’ to Ban Chick-fil-A, he's sure been on the “bully pulpit” lately ......

As he ignores the tax cut topic and goes straight to Chick-fil-A....

...somebody has his priorities in order.

[cutthemdown]

Just let them expire then. Obama has the power.

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

[orinjkrush]

no tax cuts for Millionaires. plus, eliminate the ceiling on Social Security taxes. ($110K really)

everybody under, yes.

its us or them. and we have enough people to catch and barbecue them.

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

[SoCalBronco]

This is half of the equation in terms of solving the deficit issues. Sunsetting these cuts will likely lead a deep recession in 2013, however, but I'm willing to accept that in order to net the long term fiscal savings. The other necessary half is serious entitlement reform. That means changing benefit and inflationary formulas, increasing eligibility ages and maybe taking even more radical steps. It would be nice to control health costs, but its more important to shift them away from the government.

Both aspects are necessary for fiscal health. As for taxes, I'm agreeable to going back to 2001 rates or Bowles-Simpson.

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

^

In other words, squeeze the most vulnerable members of society so tax cuts can be enjoyed by those who need them least.

That's disgraceful.

[cutthemdown]

All the dems have to do is let them expire, then write new tax cuts for the middle class and dare repubs to not vote for it. Why they just didn't do that when they had a majoirty is lost on me. You can make tax cuts retroactive so by the time taxes come around its not even like they got raised. It's just for some reason Obama was scared to mess with taxes. Now he is nearing that point where he can talk about it, but really wouldn't do anything about it until after election. At that point he won't care about the polls.

Can anyone answer why dems just didn't let the cuts expire, then the next day submit a new tax cut, the Obama tax cuts, that only go to the middle and lower classes. They had complete control it would have been no problem.

This whole debate is a joke. People act like Obama was forced to accept the Bush tax cuts.

[frerottenextelway]

Originally Posted by cutthemdown

All the dems have to do is let them expire, then write new tax cuts for the middle class and dare repubs to not vote for it. Why they just didn't do that when they had a majoirty is lost on me. You can make tax cuts retroactive so by the time taxes come around its not even like they got raised. It's just for some reason Obama was scared to mess with taxes. Now he is nearing that point where he can talk about it, but really wouldn't do anything about it until after election. At that point he won't care about the polls.

Can anyone answer why dems just didn't let the cuts expire, then the next day submit a new tax cut, the Obama tax cuts, that only go to the middle and lower classes. They had complete control it would have been no problem.

This whole debate is a joke. People act like Obama was forced to accept the Bush tax cuts.

Iirc, they were extended in exchange for the GOP not forcing the US to default on it's debt, which would've essentially ended this great nation. Go GOP! Obama's fault!

[SoCalBronco]

Originally Posted by L.A. BRONCOS FAN

^

In other words, squeeze the most vulnerable members of society so tax cuts can be enjoyed by those who need them least.

That's disgraceful.

I'm not sure you read my post carefully LABF. I said the tax cuts need to expire and there has to be entitlement reform to solve deficit issues. I never said keep the bush tax cuts and pay for it with entitlement cuts.

[DenverBrit]

Originally Posted by cutthemdown

All the dems have to do is let them expire, then write new tax cuts for the middle class and dare repubs to not vote for it. Why they just didn't do that when they had a majoirty is lost on me. You can make tax cuts retroactive so by the time taxes come around its not even like they got raised. It's just for some reason Obama was scared to mess with taxes. Now he is nearing that point where he can talk about it, but really wouldn't do anything about it until after election. At that point he won't care about the polls.

Can anyone answer why dems just didn't let the cuts expire, then the next day submit a new tax cut, the Obama tax cuts, that only go to the middle and lower classes. They had complete control it would have been no problem.

This whole debate is a joke. People act like Obama was forced to accept the Bush tax cuts.

That's a convoluted way to do this:

Obama spokesman Jay Carney said the president has been clear in his opposition to extending tax cuts for households with annual incomes above $250,000.

[Pony Boy]

Unfortunately if the tax cuts are allowed to expire, I doubt if we will use the increase in revenue to pay down the debt. Obama has plans to expand his plantation policy and keep all the folks well feed, healthy and out of the public work force.

[SoCalBronco]

Even those under 250k shouldn't get them. they maximum deficit reduction benefit comes from eliminating the entire bush tax cut package.

[Pony Boy]

Originally Posted by SoCalBronco

Even those under 250k shouldn't get them. they maximum deficit reduction benefit comes from eliminating the entire bush tax cut package.

Obama is not going to let the Child Tax Credit and Marriage Penalty expire and then move the tax rate back to 20% on capital gains ........... It would political be suicide for the Democratic party. Voters would suffer and the republicans would promise to bring back the Bush era tax cuts.

[Rohirrim]

What we need is a total overhaul of the system, including rewriting all the regulations and tax laws that favor those who offshore assets, manufacture and jobs. Unfortunately we have no hope of accomplishing this because half of our representatives still believe in progressive government (and progressive taxation) while the other half intends to "...shrink government until we can drown it in a bathtub." Not much wiggle room there.

[BroncoBeavis]

Originally Posted by Pony Boy

Obama is not going to let the Child Tax Credit and Marriage Penalty expire and then move the tax rate back to 20% on capital gains ........... It would political be suicide for the Democratic party. Voters would suffer and the republicans would promise to bring back the Bush era tax cuts.

Yeah. It won't happen. Despite what some people say, the Bush tax cuts were pretty significant for the middle class. Especially those with kids.

If the Democrats end them all, suddenly the bull**** they've been selling for years about the Bush tax cuts being only for "the rich" would become crystal clear.

Unfortunately you can't fund our level of spending forever without taking something back from the middle class, since that's where the vast majority of revenue lies.

[Rohirrim]

Supply side doctrine is unsubstantiated drivel.

[Rohirrim]

We've got two choices:

1. Abandon the "Greatest Generation" and the "baby boomers" in their old age. All those entitlements, even the ones they have paid for, need to be yanked away and spent on things like defense.

2. Raise taxes.

Choice number one will clearly win. The propaganda machine is already softening up the rest of the country to the idea that the older generation is the enemy and actually deserves to be abandoned and cheated. They're bad people. They made the anti-American era of the "Horrible 60s" happen. They lost the Vietnam War. We can steal their money. Guilt free. Hell, we should steal their money. We deserve it more than they do. They're anti-American! We can't ask the rich to pay. They're the "job creators."

[cutthemdown]

Originally Posted by frerottenextelway

Iirc, they were extended in exchange for the GOP not forcing the US to default on it's debt, which would've essentially ended this great nation. Go GOP! Obama's fault!

Like Clinton commented, Obama could have easily raised debt limit earlier before he lost his majority. You don't have to wait until last minute.

[BroncoBeavis]

Originally Posted by cutthemdown

Like Clinton commented, Obama could have easily raised debt limit earlier before he lost his majority. You don't have to wait until last minute.

You do when you have a history of saying stuff like:

The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the US Government can not pay its own bills. It is a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our Government's reckless fiscal policies. Increasing America's debt weakens us domestically and internationally. Leadership means that "the buck stops here." Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better.