Posted on 11/30/2017 10:58:48 AM PST by Mariner
WASHINGTON - Conservative groups and lawmakers are lining up against a proposal by Senate Republicans to impose automatic tax increases on millions of Americans — if their sweeping tax package doesn't grow the economy and raise tax revenues as much as projected.
The opposition comes as the tax package cleared a key procedural vote in the Senate on Wednesday. The Senate voted 52-48 to start debating the bill. Wednesday's vote potentially could pave the way for the Senate to pass the package later this week. The Senate could start voting on amendments Thursday evening.
Opposition to the tax "trigger" could doom a delicately negotiated proposal aimed at mollifying deficit hawks who worry that tax cuts for businesses and individuals could add trillions to the mounting national debt.
Tucking a potential tax increase into the tax cut bill isn't sitting well with conservatives.
"Automatic tax increases are a special level of insanity," said Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz. "I don't think it survives."
Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, called the proposal "a uniquely bad idea," especially if revenues fall short because of an unforeseen slowdown in the economy.
(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...
And if the Senate passes it with an automatic tax hike built in, there's no way it passes the House.
Let’s make it a spending trigger.
Here's the deal -- the Government will gets LOTS more money to play with IF and ONLY IF they totally screw up the national economy.
Ummmmmmmmmmm. We're incentivizing this?
Let’s do it a different way....Cut every department budget (Military excepted) automatically by 2%. That ought to do the same thing.
Should be called the “Porker” amendment. How about automatic SPENDING cuts? That is something I could agree with!
Try and kill this idea. If we can’t, then modify it to reestablish certain eliminated deductions automatically if the tax increase is triggered.
And put in a trigger that automatically cuts spending, whether the tax increase provision stays or goes.
Rand Paul didn’t. He’s going to vote for it.
In my humble opinion, I think DemocRAT money got to Corker, et al, quite a while back. No other reason for them to try and sink tax REDUCTION.
I’m with you on cutting spending. Unfortunately, we tried that once before. It was badly negotiated and required an equal reduction of military versus social spending.
Personally, I just don’t see the difficulty in reducing the corporate rate to 15-20% and the individual rates to a max of 25%. There wouldn’t need to be tinkering with deductions, exemptions, credits, pass through differences. But, in the wisdom of Congress, there needs to be tax reform at the expense of lower rates. I would rather have lower rates than simplicity which may yield greater taxes.
I am only interested in a spending cut trigger.
Nothing else.
The government is the one who needs to tighten its belt. A lot.
Rand Paul is voting for the main bill.
I like the idea — they just need to tweak it so it provides for automatic spending cute instead of automatic tax increases.
The Senate reserves such convoluted legislation for their corporate sponsor.
Not for us lowly voters and taxpayers.
Real smart...increase taxes if growth slows down. That sure sounds like a plan to fix the problem. Sounds like some people need an Intro to Econ class. As to the deficit, how about this: Any congressman who votes for a budget that increases the debt by more than 3% cannot run for reelection.
And a trigger to lower other brackets if it raises more money than they think
“I like the idea — they just need to tweak it so it provides for automatic spending cute instead of automatic tax increases.”
You must have forgotten we are talking about Republicans here.
“Automatic tax increases sound bad”, said Swamp Thing One.
“Yes, you’re right, so we will call them a trigger instead”, said Swamp Thing Two.
a uniquely crooked idea
I’m surprised Chuck & Nancy aren’t co-sponsors of the GOPe’s automatic tax increase plan.
Good idea.
(And maybe make some payments on the debt?)
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