Democrats and the Tax Cliff

wall street journal ^ | 7/8/2012 | staff

[tobyhill]

President Obama has staked his re-election on the promise to raise taxes on anyone making more than $200,000 a year, but it's going to be fascinating to see if he can hold other Democrats through Election Day. June marked the third month in a row of lousy job creation, and the economy is growing slowly even as the January 2013 tax cliff grows closer by the day.

Already, as many as six Democratic Senators are hedging their bets as the economy looks worse. That list includes Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Jon Tester of Montana, Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Bill Nelson of Florida, Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Jim Webb of Virginia. The first four are running for re-election this year, while the last two are leaving the Senate. They haven't all declared outright support for postponing the tax hikes, but they have expressed a willingness to negotiate a deal with Republicans that would avoid raising taxes on anyone next year.

Mr. Webb, for example, says he doesn't want to raise income tax brackets on "ordinary income" but he favors raising capital-gains taxes. Senator Nelson from Nebraska told the Hill newspaper that "my druthers is to extend the tax cuts for everyone," but he wouldn't mind raising the tax on millionaires "if it has to come to that." It doesn't have to come to that if Democrats don't want it to.

[Ronin]

Well, Obamacare blew that promise so far to Hades, so what’s a little more?

If anything, a promise broken that badly frees the Obamanites to go even further — in for a penny in for a pound, so to speak.

The point is that anyone who is still sticking with Obama at this stage is not going to be put off by increased taxes because most of them don’t pay any — and don’t care who gets the shaft as long as they get their checks.

If Obama can shore up key votes by raising taxes, he will. That “$250,000 under no tax increase” promise is effectively a dead letter. And, of course the MSM will cover for him as best they can.

[PGR88]

The point is that anyone who is still sticking with Obama at this stage is not going to be put off by increased taxes because most of them don’t pay any

I agree. America is not the country it used to be, and tax isn't the issue it used to be. As you say, many voters don't pay taxes anyway, and at the same time, people recognize their welfare-state needs to be paid for somehow, and the class-warfare and social-justice rubbish becomes more and more accepted every day.

[GregoTX]

Tax increases add to government power.

Most politicians want more power, most people want the government to have more power.

[scooby321]

The difference between a Roomey voter and Obama voter?

Roomey voter sign the front of a check.

[comebacknewt]

I think it is clear America is no longer a right of center country. This election will show us just how far left we have gone.

Obama is running on an unapologetic Socialist platform. Seems like at least half the country is ready to buy into it (again).

If so, we truly have reached the point of no return.

[muleskinner]

Last hours news (9:00 PST) reported Obama was going to extend the Bush Tax credits for everyone making under $250K.

Wonder what the big Obama supportes making $250,000.01/year and up are gonna say now??

[Honcho]

The republican party nominated a socialist-lite themselves. If we haven’t already reached the point of n return I’m not sure when that will be.

[comebacknewt]

Can’t disagree with anything you’ve posted.

Romney has given zero indication he is inclined to initiate the major entitlement reforms that are needed to get us back to any semblance of fiscal responsibility. So, if Obama is re-elected, the collapse comes sooner, but milquetoast Mitt eventually leads us to the exact same place.

[Republic Rocker]

America has been invaded by too many outsiders whom buy to a different vision one more similar to where they came from. Bigger Governments with less individual liberties.

This is hard to digest but I will work every day till November to put a dent into this theory or idea I mention above....

[docbnj]

Here are more anti-Romney comments — but by whom? Are these really just from conservatives with less than full-strength brains? Or are these attacks from trolls and false-flag leftists?

If you just look at the full article, and particularly the simple graph of tax proposals, you will support Romney is you care at all about the country. If you care about freedom. If you want to survive.

If you like the left, and particularly the Soros-backed left and Obama, then just let things go to hell.

[Eye of Unk]

Obamataxcare is more like a sinkhole I think.

[wayoverontheright]

This is how liberalism will soon perish-the realization by those within the party that continuing to take water out of the deep end of the pool and pouring half of it on the ground and the other half in the shallow end does nothing to level the disparity in depth. It just lowers the amount of water in the pool.

[Honcho]

Mitt leads us to the exact same place with no credibly (as if we had any left from the spending spree, free prescription drugs, and bailouts from the “conservative” George W Bush.)

Conservatives have been had. The republican party uses the platform of smaller government only when someone else is in power. I'm not sure that's enough for me any more. They've co-opted our beliefs only as a scapegoat for their big government failures so conservatives can take the blame.

I'm very much struggling with the idea that Obama may be the best choice for the county to turn the ship around as a rejection of central economic management. Somebody talk me off the cliff here.