Thursday, December 08, 2005

[Economy]

Deficit? What Deficit?

House Republicans have revealed an ideological Achilles' heel: no matter how bad the deficits get, their political patrons must still get federal kickbacks (known in GOP speak as "tax cuts"). Behold:
Debate will be considerably more rancorous today, when the House votes on a $56 billion tax package, the centerpiece of which would extend the 2003 cuts on the tax rates on dividends and capital gains through 2010. Those provisions alone would cost the Treasury $20.6 billion through 2010 and nearly $51 billion through 2015, according to the congressional Joint Committee on Taxation.
Yesterday, the House passed three non-controversial tax cuts for victims of hurricane Katrina, vets, and the middle class. These cuts, however, cost twice as much as the savings of previously-passed program cuts to the poor, and that doesn't even get into the cuts mentioned above, which will line the mink coats with pockets of ermine for the already-obscenely-wealthy.

That's compassionate conservatism for you!

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