Obama and middle-class taxes
Will bulging deficits force the president to reconsider a pledge not to raise taxes on the middle class?
It looks like President Obama's "no-middle-class-tax pledge" was a huge con job, said The Wall Street Journal in an editorial. During the campaign, Obama said nobody making less than $250,000 would "see their taxes increase by a single dime," but White House economist Larry Summers and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner now suggest that middle-class tax hikes are on the table as the deficit soars. "The undeniable reality is that you can’t run a European-style welfare-entitlement state without European-style levels of taxation on the middle class."
Two of President Obama's top economic advisors may have "cracked open the door to the possibility of middle-class tax increases on Sunday," said Michael A. Fletcher in The Washington Post, but "the White House slammed it shut on Monday." Press Secretary Robert Gibbs tried to put to rest the "politically volatile" talk of a middle-class tax increase by saying that Obama had responded "swiftly" to those advisors, telling them he will stick to his campaign promise.
That's easier said than done, said Philip Elliott in the Associated Press. It will be a struggle for President Obama to stick to his pledge not to raise taxes on the middle class, because of his "refusal to endorse specific proposals" to "pay for a heath-care overhaul that extends coverage to the uninsured." Until Obama comes up with a "firm plan," he's inviting his critics to pick apart everything he and his top advisors say.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
Trump, billions richer, is selling Bibles
Speed Read The former president is hawking a $60 "God Bless the USA Bible"
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The debate about Biden's age and mental fitness
In Depth Some critics argue Biden is too old to run again. Does the argument have merit?
By Grayson Quay Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
Henry Kissinger dies aged 100: a complicated legacy?
Talking Point Top US diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner remembered as both foreign policy genius and war criminal
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Last updated
-
Trump’s rhetoric: a shift to 'straight-up Nazi talk'
Why everyone's talking about Would-be president's sinister language is backed by an incendiary policy agenda, say commentators
By The Week UK Published
-
More covfefe: is the world ready for a second Donald Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question Republican's re-election would be a 'nightmare' scenario for Europe, Ukraine and the West
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Xi-Biden meeting: what's in it for both leaders?
Today's Big Question Two superpowers seek to stabilise relations amid global turmoil but core issues of security, trade and Taiwan remain
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published