Republicans OK With Tax Increases, Just Not For The Wealthy

by Stuart Shapiro

Republicans are against tax increases, right?  We’ve heard little else over the past few months.  Well it turns out, the Republicans, as represented by a House Leadership member, Rep. Jeb Hensarling (pictured), have a tax they want to raise.

Many of the same Republicans who fought hammer-and-tong to keep the George W. Bush-era income tax cuts from expiring on schedule are now saying a different “temporary” tax cut should end as planned. By their own definition, that amounts to a tax increase.

The tax break extension they oppose is sought by President Barack Obama. Unlike proposed changes in the income tax, this policy helps the 46 percent of all Americans who owe no federal income taxes but who pay a “payroll tax” on practically every dime they earn.

In the same article, Rep Dave Camp talks about how a continued payroll tax holiday (the tax cut being contemplated) would hurt the deficit (another thing Republicans pretend to care about).  Nope, Republicans only care about two things it appears, tax cuts for their wealthy donors, and making sure the economy doesn’t improve in 2012.

By: Stuart Shapiro

Stuart is a professor and the Director of the Public Policy
program at the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers
University. He teaches economics and cost-benefit analysis and studies
regulation in the United States at both the federal and state levels.
Prior to coming to Rutgers, Stuart worked for five years at the Office
of Management and Budget in Washington under Presidents Clinton and
George W. Bush.