The payroll tax shell game

The ballyhooed bill delays a de facto tax hike for millions of Americans — but also undermines Social Security and the economic recovery

Paul Brandus

I hate to be a Grinch, I really do. But the payroll tax bill passed last week by Congress and signed by President Obama is one of the worst and most disingenuous pieces of legislation to emerge from this town in years. It hurts many of the very same people — the middle class — that these pandering politicians claim to be helping.

The bill extends a 2 percent payroll tax cut through January and February. This keeps an extra $166 in the pocket of an average wage earner for two months — badly needed for millions of cash-strapped Americans in a tough economy. But if you look beyond the bill's short-term benefits, it can be argued that in one fell swoop it:

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Paul Brandus

An award-winning member of the White House press corps, Paul Brandus founded WestWingReports.com (@WestWingReport) and provides reports for media outlets around the United States and overseas. His career spans network television, Wall Street, and several years as a foreign correspondent based in Moscow, where he covered the collapse of the Soviet Union for NBC Radio and the award-winning business and economics program Marketplace. He has traveled to 53 countries on five continents and has reported from, among other places, Iraq, Chechnya, China, and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.