Raising the Bar: Will House Dems Demand Job-Destroying Tax Hikes as Well?

September 20, 2011

FYI, a similar version of this release below went out to the following districts: Jason Altmire (PA-04), John Barrow (GA-12), Sanford Bishop (GA-02), Tim Bishop (NY-01), Leonard Boswell (IA-03), Bruce Braley (IA-01), Lois Capps (CA-23), Dennis Cardoza (CA-18), Russ Carnahan (MO-03), Kathy Castor (FL-11), Ben Chandler (KY-06), David Cicilline (RI-01), Gerry Connolly (VA-11), Jim Cooper (TN-05), Jim Costa (CA-20), Jerry Costello (IL-12), Mark Critz (PA-12), Henry Cuellar (TX-28), Peter DeFazio (OR-04), Raul Grijalva (AZ-07), Brian Higgins (NY-27), Jim Himes (CT-04), Ruben Hinojosa (TX-15), Kathy Hochul (NY-26), Tim Holden (PA-17), Rush Holt (NJ-12), Steve Israel (NY-02), Bill Keating (MA-10), Ron Kind (WI-03), Larry Kissell (NC-08), Rick Larsen (WA-02), David Loebsack (IA-02), Jim Matheson (UT-02), Carolyn McCarthy (NY-04), Mike McIntyre (NC-07), Jerry McNerney (CA-11), Michael Michaud (ME-02), Brad Miller (NC-13), Bill Owens (NY-23), Frank Pallone (NJ-06), Ed Perlmutter (CO-07), Gary Peters (MI-09), Collin Peterson (MN-07), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), David Price (NC-04), Nick Rahall (WV-03), Loretta Sanchez (CA-47), Kurt Schrader (OR-05), Heath Shuler (NC-11), Adam Smith (WA-09), Betty Sutton (OH-13), John Tierney (MA-06), Niki Tsongas (MA-05), Pete Visclosky (IN-01), Tim Walz (MN-01), John Yarmuth (KY-03)

Raising the Bar: Will Cooper Demand Job-Destroying Tax Hikes as Well?
President Obama Says He Will Veto Any Plan that Doesn’t Contain Tax Increases, Despite the Bad Economy

Washington — Since President Obama is now demanding that job-destroying tax hikes be part of any deficit plan, his allies like Tennessee Democrat Jim Cooper will also have to weigh in on their priorities. Does Cooper recognize, like President Obama apparently did two years ago, that raising taxes during a bad economy will only make matters worse? Or will Cooper also dig in and only vote for a plan that has tax hikes to pay for more failed stimulus spending?

“President Obama’s insistence on job-destroying tax hikes suggests that Jim Cooper and his Democrat colleagues in Washington will also demand higher taxes to pay for more failed stimulus spending that has only made a bad economy much worse,” said NRCC Communications Director Paul Lindsay. “Does that mean Cooper will only vote for plans that include job-crushing tax hikes on small businesses and families in Tennessee, as well?”

When President Obama unveiled his tax plan on Monday, he issued a veto threat against any plan that doesn’t raise taxes:

“President Obama called on Monday for Congress to adopt his ‘balanced’ plan combining entitlement cuts, tax increases and war savings to reduce the federal deficit by more than $3 trillion over the next 10 years, and said he would veto any approach that relied solely on spending reductions to address the fiscal shortfall.” (Helene Cooper, “Obama Vows Veto if Deficit Plan Has No Tax Increases,” The New York Times, 9/19/11)

This is a stark contrast from President Obama in 2009, when he explained correctly how tax hikes destroy jobs by stifling growth:

“…[T]he last thing you want to do is raise taxes in the middle of a recession because that would just suck up – take more demand out of the economy and put business further in a hole.” (Stephen F. Hayes, “Obama vs. Obama,” The Weekly Standard‘s Blog, 7/11/11)

Given President Obama’s stubborn stance on taxes, Jim Cooper should explain whether he will also demand tax hikes to gain his vote. Either way, Cooper will be hard-pressed to explain his Washington Democrat leaders’ demands for job-destroying taxes to pay for more failed stimulus, when his constituents in Tennessee are simply looking for more jobs.

Raising the Bar: Will Cooper Demand Job-Destroying Tax Hikes as Well? http://ow.ly/6zxty #madeinwdc

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