Dems Target High Earners to Fund Health Plan

[RipCity]

WASHINGTON -- Senate Democrats are revisiting proposals to raise taxes on high-income people to help pay for an overhaul of the health-care system.

The main proposal getting renewed attention is one by President Barack Obama that would limit the federal tax deductions for higher-income families for mortgage interest and other widely claimed purposes, said two senior Senate Democratic aides.

The development reflects a hardening of partisan lines in the effort to forge a health-care bill. Raising taxes on the wealthy was regarded as a virtual deal-breaker for Senate Republicans engaged in negotiations over the spring and summer. So Senate Democrats steered clear of such an approach.

"Bluntly...the idea of getting Republicans on board [a health-care overhaul] is becoming much more fantastical, so some ideas that were jettisoned for that reason are coming back," said one aide.

Targeting the rich also conflicted with Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus's hopes of taxing the most costly employer-based health plans as a way to reduce overall health-care spending. But many Democrats are losing hope that Baucus's bipartisan negotiations will produce a deal, so they are beginning to plan for a bill crafted by Democrats. A spokeswoman for Baucus (D., Mont.) said his committee is still pursuing a bipartisan bill.

Placing much of the burden of a health-care overhaul on higher-income earners is likely to face political hurdles of its own, particularly among moderate Democrats. And limiting the value of deductions for higher-income earners could run into opposition with some interest groups, such as the real-estate industry.

Obama had originally proposed capping the value of itemized deductions at 28% of the total claimed for families making more than $250,000, as a way to help pay for a health-care overhaul. If Senate Democrats decide to include the president's idea in a health bill, the actual cap could be somewhat more generous to taxpayers -- potentially as high as 35%, said the Democratic aides.

Source

 

[Shapecity]

I thought they planned to pay for the new healthcare system by making it more efficient? Taxing higher income earners isn't the solution.

 

[deception]

I thought they planned to pay for the new healthcare system by making it more efficient? Taxing higher income earners isn't the solution.

president obama did make that election promise of not taxing the middle class so i dont see how he could pay for the public option without a tax on high income earners. besides, president obama's tax rates would be rolled back to president clinton's day, btw, president clinton's days were more prosperous economically than both bush's and reagan's tenure. lest we forget that ppl were receiving signing bonuses to work fast food jobs in clinton's tenure.

 

[Shapecity]

president obama did make that election promise of not taxing the middle class so i dont see how he could pay for the public option without a tax on high income earners. besides, president obama's tax rates would be rolled back to president clinton's day, btw, president clinton's days were more prosperous economically than both bush's and reagan's tenure. lest we forget that ppl were receiving signing bonuses to work fast food jobs in clinton's tenure.

I remember those years very well. Clinton created a bubble in the technology sector. Loose credit and a lot of government money being pumped into the dot.com arena had the economy booming. As we saw a few years later it was all b.s.

Same thing is happening in the real estate sector currently. Fake wealth was created and now people can't pay their bills.

Taxing higher income earners aka business owners will just create another problem .. job losses.

If they really wanted to clean up health care they'd make it more efficient, close loopholes to prevent scams, and really go after people who take advantage of the system to weed them out. Whether it be pharmaceutical companies, insurance companies, doctors, hospitals, 3rd party vendors, or patients themselves.

Clean up and enforce the fraud and it will lower the prices for everyone.

 

[rocketeer]

president obama did make that election promise of not taxing the middle class so i dont see how he could pay for the public option without a tax on high income earners. besides, president obama's tax rates would be rolled back to president clinton's day, btw, president clinton's days were more prosperous economically than both bush's and reagan's tenure. lest we forget that ppl were receiving signing bonuses to work fast food jobs in clinton's tenure.

and how is that election promise working out?

 

[deception]

I remember those years very well. Clinton created a bubble in the technology sector. Loose credit and a lot of government money being pumped into the dot.com arena had the economy booming. As we saw a few years later it was all b.s.

Same thing is happening in the real estate sector currently. Fake wealth was created and now people can't pay their bills.

Taxing higher income earners aka business owners will just create another problem .. job losses.

If they really wanted to clean up health care they'd make it more efficient, close loopholes to prevent scams, and really go after people who take advantage of the system to weed them out. Whether it be pharmaceutical companies, insurance companies, doctors, hospitals, 3rd party vendors, or patients themselves.

Clean up and enforce the fraud and it will lower the prices for everyone.

thats a little bit of selective, revisionist history shape. here's the record: http://clinton5.nara.gov/WH/Accomplishments/eightyears-03.html

-although, i will say that his welfare reform stampeded on the poor
-moreover, michael moore in stupid white man famously describes voting for clintion-as the first time he voted for a republican
-and as for the dot.com bubble, i think it was a lot more serendipitous than tactical as some clinton admin officials would like us to believe
-and when the bubble burst in the late 90's, the fed lowered interest rates which persuaded homeowners to refinance and banks to securtize mortgages which ultimately led to the massive defaults and shock to the system
-so, im not a cock eyed believer in clinton, but the dude did have game as demonstrated by his irrefutable accomplishments

 

[Shapecity]

it is revisionist, but those were short lived accomplishments. looking back i think clinton empowered china to become the economic powerhouse they are today. to be honest i view politicians as mercenaries. they twist the rules and laws to benefit the highest bidders. the worst i've experienced was bush-cheney though. those two pricks made the rest of the world hate the united states.

i go back and forth on obama. i'm not sure what to make of him just yet, it's still too early to judge and he did inherit a shit storm of problems from the previous 8 years of flat out deceit. i think obama would have been an amazing president if we weren't involved in two wars and dealing with a collapsing us economy. he would have been a positive difference maker in a surplus year, but right now i think he's overwhelmed with too many large issues to juggle.

 

[deception]

it is revisionist, but those were short lived accomplishments. looking back i think clinton empowered china to become the economic powerhouse they are today.

bush empowered china by borrowing for them to fund military adventurism. and i remember vividly how bush promised to be tough on china for their egregious human rights record in taiwan and tibet when he came into office. then 9/11 happened and he extended them carte blanche to expunge their muslim population and falun gong members. if america ever gets out of the red- i would force them to float their currency, something they seem unwilling to do.

 

[Shapecity]

bush empowered china by borrowing for them to fund military adventurism. and i remember vividly how bush promised to be tough on china for their egregious human rights record in taiwan and tibet when he came into office. then 9/11 happened and he extended them carte blanche to expunge their muslim population and falun gong members. if america ever gets out of the red- i would force them to float their currency, something they seem unwilling to do.

bush did also, but clinton opened the doors for us businesses to move manufacturing into china and for products made in china to then be consumed in the us. dell was one of the first to take advantage of china's cheap labor and low ball the rest of the pc market.