Instead of waiting until after November’s election, obama should stop campaigning for a moment and start working with Congress to prevent this gargantuan tax increase from taking place. Not only would doing so give assurance to families, businesses, and investors that taxes won’t be rising while the economy is still staggering. It would also show that obama is capable of chewing gum and walking at the same time.

The tax increase, also known as “Taxmageddon” is a $494 billion hike. If action isn’t taken, current law dictates that seven different categories will witness expiring tax policies, while five new obamacare tax increases begin.

Approximately 34% of the tax increase come from letting the tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 expire. Best known for cutting marginal income tax rates, the reductions also lowered the marriage penalty, increased the child and adoption tax credits, while increasing tax breaks for the costs of dependent care and education. Contrary to “progressive” rhetoric, these taxes have a direct effect on the lives of people in all income tax brackets, not just evil rich people who “don’t pay their fair share”.

Another 25% comes from the expiration of the highly debated payroll tax cut. The expiration of a patch on the Alternative Minimum Tax, which prevents middle-income families from paying a tax intended for “the rich” accounts for another 24% of the hike.

The obamacare tax increases, hidden from public view by “progressive” deceit and delay tactics, begin kicking in with one of the most damaging taxes in the law, a 3.8% Hospital Insurance surtax on wages, as well as on salaries and investment income over $250,000.

To top that off, the so-called death tax also expires in 2013. The rate will rise from 35 percent today to 55 percent and the exemption will fall from $5 million to $3.5 million. Then there’s the end of the tax cuts contained in the 2009 stimulus and the expiration of full write-offs for new business capital investments.

Since 2007 obama has had an ongoing, oft repeated mantra: “I can make a firm pledge. Under my plan, no family making less than $250,000 a year…which includes a 98 percent of small-business owners, you will not see your taxes increase one single dime under my plan. Not your income tax, not your payroll tax, not your capital gains tax, no tax. We don’t need to raise taxes on the middle class! You will not see your taxes increased a single dime. I repeat, not one single dime.”

Never mind that he broke that pledge by signing a tax increase on tobacco in early 2009. As a mere voter, you’re too stupid to notice such minor, unimportant details. Move along, there’s nothing to see here.

Apparently the only one “smart” enough to realize that tobacco use in America is restricted to those with incomes exceeding $250,000 a year is the former community radicalizer from Chicago. You may know of him. He’s the one who’s entire college and medical history have been hidden from public view since the day he first infected the Oval Office with his faux transparency, un-kept promises, aggressively anti-American views, anti-business policies, war on religious liberties, attack on affordable energy, intentionally divisive identity politics rhetoric and non-stop campaigning for what would prove for America to be a disastrous second term.

If this is how he behaves while he’s politically obligated to mask his true intentions from undecided voters during an election year, the entire globe will live to regret an extended obama presidency for decades, in not for a century or more.

http://mjfellright.wordpress.com/2012/05/21/the-2013-tax-increase-obama-pledged-would-never-happen/

The leaders of congressional Republicans will present an extension of the Bush tax cuts to the rest of the House and Senate GOP tonight. The proposal has been stripped of the requirement that cuts be made to pay for the continuing tax cuts that continue to starve the Social Security fund of badly needed revenue.

Republicans are not willing to be responsible for a perceived tax increase on 160 million Americans in an election year and have therefor given up the fight on the tax holiday. Instead, they have de-coupled the unemployment insurance extension and the so-called “doc-fix” from the bill – a move that has irritated Democrats who seem only ready to accept everything they want while giving nothing in return.

Despite getting the payroll tax holiday extended until the end of the year without any concessions, the White House has indicated that they want everything and intend to give nothing. Jay Carney said that they believe that the unemployment extension and Medicare doc-fix should be included in this deal.

All that is left is for the White House to complain that Republicans are unwilling to negotiate despite them being the only ones at the table giving in on anything – at all.

A news outlet I do not often quote, The New York Times,  has an opinion piece that puts it succinctly:

After a long stretch of high unemployment, legislative turmoil and, in turn, slipping public approval, President Obama seemed to regain his political footing this week with the help of House Republicans, whose handling of a standoff over payroll taxes had even leading conservatives accusing them of bungling the politically charged issue.

Obama has done absolutely nothing right, yet the GOP leadership is handing him a populist issue upon which he can turn his entire campaign around.

There is no way the GOP and Conservatives can come out of a tax battle smelling like a rose when the Democrats are voting for an increase that the right is willing to vote against. Harry Reid, Barack Obama and their puppet masters have played a masterful gambit and Senate Majority Leader McConnell and House Speaker Boehner bit – hard.

Despite the fact that the Senate passed a bill they knew would not pass the House and got on the first train out of the swamp, the Republicans stayed behind “doing their work” and will have nothing but egg on their faces for it.

The Senate bill offers a two month, 2% tax holiday on payroll social security taxes. The House bill offers the same holiday but over a year’s time. The Democrats have to swallow a provision that puts the Keystone XL pipeline on the front burner.

Boehner tried to point out that the House had conferees ready to work out a compromise in joint committee over the differences in the two bills. He just asked that the Senate send their own conferees to join in the discussions so that they could work out a compromise that could be passed by both houses.

Obama came out in a press conference this week and demanded that the full House come back from vacation and vote on the Senate’s plan – echoing Reid’s commentary (or vice-versa – it’s so hard to tell now adays).

Both plans include a push to get a decision made on the Keystone XL pipeline, an extension of unemployment benefits, the Medicare doc-fix and a payroll tax holiday – so what’s the problem?

The fight isn’t over whether or not a tax cut should happen, the fight has been over how to pay for it and what to include with it.

The Senate’s 2-month version includes full unemployment benefit extensions at current levels. The House plan cuts the length of jobless benefits from 99 weeks to 79 weeks and requires beneficiaries without a high school diploma to seek education in order to continue receiving benefits.

A better play for the Republicans would have been to agree to the two month extension no strings attached. Then in February when we’re still talking about it, mention that the GOP gave something in December, the DNC gave nothing – just as they have for the last 3 years. The democrats are all take and no give –  no compromise.

Boehner and McConnell  are getting played and played well. If they continue with their ill-thought strategies, it will not be long before neither are leaders of much of anything.

Republicans say the 2 month extension leaves Americans in the dark during a time of bleak economic uncertainty and that it would leave Congress facing the same issue early next year. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said “Middle-class Americans and working families need to know that their taxes won’t be going up at any point next year”. Rep. Lynn Jenkins stated “Handling tax policy on a month-to-month basis isn’t just irresponsible, it’s downright crazy”. He also questioned how dealing with this issue in February would be any easier than it is now.

Democratic Representative Nancy Pelosi felt it easier to blame “the extreme Tea Party element of the Republicans in the House”. She said “They’ve never wanted a tax cut, and now they’re saying the tax cut for middle-income people is too small”. Sen. Charles Schumer, in a statement Monday night, accused the House Speaker of age old tactics used by both parties saying “Speaker Boehner is using one of the oldest tricks in Washington of claiming to support something and then sending it to a legislative graveyard where it never sees the light of day”.

If a deal is not reached by the end of the year, hard working Americans would see their payroll taxes go back to 6.2% of earnings, from the current 4.2% rate.

From John Boehner’s YouTube channel

Speaker Boehner speaks on the importance of a full year payroll tax cut extension.