Author Topic: Obama admits his tax plan would hurt the economy  (Read 701 times)

youandme

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Obama admits his tax plan would hurt the economy
« on: September 07, 2008, 11:08:51 AM »
Some people on here argued that his tax cuts would not push the US into a depression  ???  ::)

Obama: Recession could delay rescinding tax cuts
 
WASHINGTON - Democrat Barack Obama says he would delay rescinding President Bush's tax cuts on wealthy Americans if he becomes the next president and the economy is in a recession, suggesting such an increase would further hurt the economy.

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Nevertheless, Obama has no plans to extend the Bush tax cuts beyond their expiration date, as Republican John McCain advocates. Instead, Obama wants to push for his promised tax cuts for the middle class, he said in a broadcast interview aired Sunday.

"Even if we're still in a recession, I'm going to go through with my tax cuts," Obama said. "That's my priority."

What about increasing taxes on the wealthy?

"I think we've got to take a look and see where the economy is. I mean, the economy is weak right now," Obama said on "This Week" on ABC. "The news with Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, I think, along with the unemployment numbers, indicates that we're fragile."

Obama was referring to the two mortgage companies taken over by the federal government Sunday in what could become a huge taxpayer bailout. The nation's unemployment rate climbed to 6.1 percent in August from 5.7 percent the month before, the government said last week. It was the first time in five years that the unemployment rate had topped 6 percent.

Obama and McCain have sparred over tax policy for months. Obama says McCain wants to continue Bush administration policies, noting that McCain had voted against the Bush tax cuts but then embraced them as he campaigned for the Republican presidential nomination.

"John McCain likes to talk about fiscal responsibility, but there is no doubt that his proposals blow a hole through the budget," Obama said.

McCain has repeatedly hammered Obama over taxes in an attempt to paint him as a typical tax-and-spend liberal. McCain wants to make permanent the Bush tax cuts, which are set to expire at the end of 2010.

"We can get this economy back on it's feet," McCain said in an interview aired Sunday on "Face the Nation" on CBS. "Don't raise their taxes. Get it going again. Americans are hurting in a way that they have not hurt for a long time."

The Tax Policy Center, a think tank run jointly by the Brookings Institution and the Urban Institute, concluded that Obama's tax plan would benefit middle-income taxpayers more than McCain's. However, Obama would raise payroll taxes on taxpayers with incomes above $250,000, and he would raise corporate taxes. Small businesses that make more than $250,000 a year also would see taxes rise.

McCain's plan cuts taxes across all income levels. It would cut taxes for those in the top 1 percent by more than $125,000, raising their after-tax income an average 9.5 percent, the center concluded.

youandme

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Re: Obama admits his tax plan would hurt the economy
« Reply #1 on: September 07, 2008, 11:11:26 AM »
time to hang it up Obama


youandme

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Re: Obama admits his tax plan would hurt the economy
« Reply #2 on: September 07, 2008, 11:30:44 AM »
So he would knowingly put this country in harm's way?

WOW

Obama says 'little doubt' country in recession 
Posted on 7/13/2008

 Barack Obama said Saturday there is "little doubt we've moved into recession."

Obama underscored the country's need for a second economic stimulus package.

Obama said we need to take swift steps to shore up the housing market and a long-term energy policy to reduce reliance on foreign oil imports.

Obama on Iraq
Obama also said removing U.S. forces from Iraq won't be "perfectly neat."

Obama said a call from Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for a withdrawal timetable supports his position more than the longer term presence favored by rival John McCain or President Bush.

Bush and the McCain have chided Obama for proposing to withdraw U.S. forces within 16 months of taking office.

McCain has even suggested it exhibits naivete by Obama.

Obama Comments
Obama said, "John McCain and George Bush both said that if Iraq, as a sovereign government, stated that it was time for us to start withdrawing our troops, then they would respect the wishes of that sovereign government."

Obama on Trip to Iraq
In addition, Obama talked about his upcoming trip to European capitals and U.S. battlefronts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He said he would be accompanied by Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-NE, and Sen. Jack Reed, D-RI.

Despite their differing political parties, each has been mentioned as a potential Obama vice presidential running mate.

Hagel served as an Army sergeant in Vietnam and was twice wounded in 1968, earning two Purple Hearts.

Reed, a West Point graduate, was a former Army Ranger and paratrooper.

Obama said, "They're both experts on foreign policy. They reflect, I think, a traditional bipartisan wisdom when it comes to foreign policy. Neither of them are ideologues but try to get the facts right and make a determination about what's best for U.S. interests - and they're good guys."

Obama on Economy
Obama delivered his most definitive judgment to date on the health of the U.S. economy.

Obama said, "I have little doubt that we've moved into recession at this point, and the sooner we can get money into people's pockets, the sooner that we can stabilize the housing market, and the sooner that we can send a message to the markets that we're serious about creating an energy policy that will create greater energy efficiency over the next decade or so, I think the sooner we're going to get our fundamentals right."

He said he has been closely monitoring the financial health of mortgage providers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Obama said concerns about falling home values may require a government bailout prompted.

He said, "There are a lot of different definitions of what a 'bailout' would look like."

Obama said, "There are issues related to the short-term liquidity - can they borrow money? - versus issues related to whether the underlying assets of the two corporations are really unsound. And I think we need to watch carefully and see how it plays out before we make a decision about which steps need to be taken."

Obama on Jesse Jackson
Obama said he hadn't spoken with the Rev. Jesse Jackson since the civil rights leader spoke into an open microphone that he wanted to castrate Obama for delivering a speech about fatherhood that Jackson thought spoke down to black men.

Obama said, "I had spoken to him before, a few days before what he said was released, and, we had actually discussed some of the concerns that he had raised about my fatherhood speech, and I told him that I absolutely believe that we have structural inequalities that have to be dealt with."

He said he told Jackson he is committed to better education, health care and community reconstruction to benefit black families, but fatherhood must also be discussed when half of black children grow up without their father.

Obama said, "My argument is simply that it's not an either/or proposition; it's a both/and proposition."

Obama said, "I won't back up one bit in asserting that that's a problem that we have to be honest about."