Gridlock could be a good thing

[scheming daemons]

...when it comes to the debate about extending the Bush tax cuts.

If we make it to December 31st with no extension, then the tax rates return to their pre-2001 levels.

No matter what happens in November... the best thing would be for the DEMOCRATS to get 40 Senators to filibuster.



Let the tax cuts... ALL of them... expire. That's preferable to extending them for everyone, rich included.

[Curmudgeoness]

1. I don't like it, but I have to agree. Since it looks like tax cuts

for the wealthy are inexplicibly a hot topic, the best we can do right now is to do nothing.

I remember the tax cut well. So excited that I would have more money in my check. For a one week check, I had $.05 more in my check. I didn't know what to do with it. They can have it, I've lost more than that in my couch.

[customerserviceguy]

2. I'm all for it

It's time to start paying the bills, and the expiration hurts the wealthy the most.

[gophates]

4. Anything that hurts the wealthy most has my support. nt

[lamp_shade]

3. Has my vote.

[BzaDem]

5. For the sake of the economy and the middle class, we need the middle class tax cuts extended.

Raising taxes on the poor and middle class will hurt the economy, similar to how cutting spending would hurt the economy (though the magnitude is somewhat different).

However, if Republicans hold the middle class tax cuts hostage until they get the tax cuts for the rich, we should not pass anything and take it to the election (even though it probably won't help much in the election).

There is a risk to this strategy however. Should Republicans win both houses of Congress, they will pass an extension to all of the tax cuts every week and Obama will continually have to veto them. Obviously vetoing them is not technically difficult, but it could become politically difficult if Republicans somehow win the political argument (possibly with a complicit media that does not correctly explain the issue). If Obama is getting killed politically as he gets closer to re-election, he might eventually sign the bill. That's why we need to get the MIDDLE CLASS tax cuts passed now, so Obama will only have to veto the tax cuts for the rich (which probably won't gain political traction for the Republicans).