Republicans said Wednesday that they are prepared to filibuster
President Barack Obama’s small-business tax cut, believing that any
political hit will be minimal even as they go against decades of GOP
support for tax cuts of all kinds.
The Republican Party believes it will have plenty of cover for voting to block the tax cut, and some Democrats quietly agree, feeling the White House botched the messaging on the bill — the first item on its “to-do” list — by pivoting earlier this week to extending Bush tax cuts.
For months, Democrats led by Sen. Charles Schumer (N.Y.) had carefully laid the groundwork for a tax trap: Republicans would either have to give Democrats a victory on a small-business jobs bill or face a backlash for blocking a straight-up tax cut because it had Obama’s name on it.
But that trap has been muddied by the White House’s pivot to the Bush tax cuts and by the hard line Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has taken against Republican tax amendments.
Several Republicans said after a Conference lunch Wednesday that they would not go along with the bill if Reid did not give the minority the chance to vote on their amendments. And they noted that the bill technically violates the Constitution because revenue bills must start in the House.
Read more: http://www.rollcall.com/issues/58_4/Political-Theater-Over-Tax-Cut-216075-1.html?pos=htmbtxt
The Republican Party believes it will have plenty of cover for voting to block the tax cut, and some Democrats quietly agree, feeling the White House botched the messaging on the bill — the first item on its “to-do” list — by pivoting earlier this week to extending Bush tax cuts.
For months, Democrats led by Sen. Charles Schumer (N.Y.) had carefully laid the groundwork for a tax trap: Republicans would either have to give Democrats a victory on a small-business jobs bill or face a backlash for blocking a straight-up tax cut because it had Obama’s name on it.
But that trap has been muddied by the White House’s pivot to the Bush tax cuts and by the hard line Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has taken against Republican tax amendments.
Several Republicans said after a Conference lunch Wednesday that they would not go along with the bill if Reid did not give the minority the chance to vote on their amendments. And they noted that the bill technically violates the Constitution because revenue bills must start in the House.
Read more: http://www.rollcall.com/issues/58_4/Political-Theater-Over-Tax-Cut-216075-1.html?pos=htmbtxt
No comments:
Post a Comment