Posted on 12/02/2012 4:45:17 PM PST by Libloather
Geithner presses GOP, says no deficit deal unless tax rates rise on wealthy
By Meghashyam Mali - 12/02/12 09:50 AM ET
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner sought to raise pressure on Republicans amid “fiscal cliff” talks, insisting Sunday that any deficit deal would need to raise tax rates on the wealthiest.
“There's not going to be an agreement without rates going up,” said Geithner, who appeared on all Sunday morning shows, during an interview with CNN’s “State of the Union.”
“If they are going to force higher rates on virtually all Americans because they're unwilling to let tax rates go up on 2 percent of Americans, then, I mean that's the choice they're going to have to make,” he added.
Lawmakers and the White House are working to reach a deficit-reduction deal to avoid the looming tax-rate rises and automatic spending cuts set to take effect on Jan. 1, which economists warn could bring on a new recession.
Democrats want to extend the Bush-era tax rates for middle class families, while allowing the current lower rates for those with income over $250,000 to expire.
Republicans, though, say they want to extend the rates across the board, claiming any rate rise would hurt the economy. GOP lawmakers want new revenue to come from closing loopholes and deductions in the tax code, instead of from tax-rate rises.
Geithner on Sunday defended the initial White House deficit plan, which Republicans quickly rejected last week.
“It's a very good plan and we think it's a good basis for these conversations,” said the secretary. “What we did is put forward a very comprehensive, very carefully designed mix of savings and tax rates to help us put us back on a path to stabilizing our debt, fixing our debt and living within our means.”
On Thursday, Geithner presented lawmakers with the initial administration offer, which included $1.6 trillion in tax increases and $400 billion in cuts to entitlement spending.
Speaker Boehner (R-Ohio) rejected the plan as “not a serious proposal” and said the White House had asked for new spending that he said exceeded the upfront cuts proposed.
Boehner on Friday said negotiations were at a “stalemate” and called on Democrats to do more to match the GOP at the bargaining table, after Republicans said they were willing to allow tax revenue increases in any proposed deal.
In an interview with Fox News Sunday, Boehner maintained his criticism of the White House plan, calling it “nonsense.”
The speaker said he was “flabbergasted” when he saw the proposal.
The White House “has responded with virtually nothing, they’ve actually asked for more revenue than they’ve been asking for the whole time,” Boehner said.
“At the end of the year, they wanted to extend unemployment benefits, they wanted a new stimulus program for infrastructure, they wanted to extend some other tax breaks and all of this new stimulus spending would literally be more than the spending cuts that he was willing to put on the table,” Boehner added.
Despite Boehner’s public pessimism, Geithner said he was optimistic that a deal could be reached in time.
“I think we're far apart still, but I think we're moving closer together,” said Geithner. “This is something we can do. And I think we're going to get there, because there's too much at stake not to get there, not just for the American economy, but for the world economy.”
But Geithner also said that the next move would have to come from the GOP.
“I think right now, the best thing to do is for them to come to us and say, look, here's what we think makes sense,” Geithner said. “What we can't do is try to figure out what's going to be good for them. They have to come tell us.”
“They're in a hard place,” he added later. “And they're having a tough time trying to figure out what they can do, what they can get support from their members for. That's understandable… This is very difficult for them, and we might need to give them a little more time to figure out where they go next.”
Who is this punk?
When a known TAX CHEATER can go on TV and blame others for any fiscal cliff, we are in serious trouble!
Call Obama’s bluff.
That will bring a lot of the 53% who voted for Ubama back into the taxpayer population.
Let them feel how much government costs.
No deal unless entitlement reform.
There isn’t going to be any deal.
See you after the fall, Mr. Geithner.
This is what happens when you got a commie running the joint who thinks that the IRS is a wealth redistibution machine with guns.
Ah, Timmy Geithner.
Whose father Peter Geithner was President of the Ford Foundation funding some of the initiatives in third world hellholes that Obama’s mother, Stanley Ann Dunham was directly involved in.
Small world, ain’t it?
If I was discussing / negotiating this with him I would say
“we will have to negotiate taxes. And we cannot do that here. However everything is on the table.
Now let’s get to the meat of it and discuss spending cuts. We are at $16T in debt and adding $1T each year. This is unsustainable and will turn this once great country into Greece. We must get this under control and cap the debt and keep from enslaving future generations. We propose across the board spending cuts with the same percentage applied to ALL departments.”
That is very true. Insight noted.
No-no.
Mark Levin has the best idea to turn the tables:
HOUSE OF REPS PASS A MIDDLE CLASS TAX CUT / PERMANENT BUSH RATE.
SEND IT TO REID IN THE SENATE LET HIM NOT TABLE IT OR VOTE IT DOWN.
AJORN HOUSE FOR XMASS
It’s part and parcel of the Marxist line that “the wealthy” must be penalized for being so much more comfortable than the proletariat.
The trouble is, of course, as even a superficial examination of history will reveal, that once the wealthy are stripped of their “wealth” then society becomes a poverty-stricken mess with nothing to offer the screaming mob any longer, and revolution and anarchy are the inevitable result. Political revolution is the sure result.
This revolution is Obama, Chaper II. He studied his Karl Marx well, and is employing congress and his voter base well - as the Useful Idiots they are.
Strange that after so much fuss and fury, America has surrendered to Marxism/communism without so much as a ruffle.
No deficit deal until everyone starts paying taxes. I’m tired of supporting 6 families when 5 of them are nothing but bums.
Take income THIS year, push expenses into NEXT year ... not so hard, is it?
Geithner knows he personally has nothing to worry about, as the maxim is , “From each according to his ability..”
How strange. One might conclude we fought and won the Cold War...for this?
If obozo got EVERYTHING he and his buzzard cronies want it would be $89 Bln over 10 years — enough to run the government for 8 WHOLE DAYS.
Part of me says to complete cave — give them everything they want and let all hell break loose. Or do nothing and let all hell break loose.
Either way, Americans are too stupid to know this regime owns this economy. I just don’t know if another 4 year of agony would be enough to open their eyes.
exit82~~:” Whose father Peter Geithner was President of the Ford Foundation funding some of the initiatives in third world hellholes that Obama’s mother, Stanley Ann Dunham was directly involved in.
Small world, ain’t it?”
Would that make it an incestous relationship ?
The only thing more comical than tax no-pay Geitner having a hissey-fit
is the Obungler-in-chief narcissist having a hissey-fit because he can’t get his own way !
its also what happens when the commie’s opponents fight like little girls for the past 6 years as the GOP has....
The closer we get to the deadline, the more worry is going to set in, then the closer after that, the panic is gonna set in.
The GOP will say, "Okay, we'll give you a little bit if you give a little bit back." The Dems will say "Okay, we'll take a little bit and take a little bit of our offer back." Then the GOP will say, "Okay, we'll give you a little bit if you don't take that little bit back." The Dems will say "Okay, we'll take you little bit and take a big chunk back."
Same S***, Different Day.
The GOP is under the gun with this one. The Clock's tickin' for THEM, not the Dems. Once the clock runs out, every media outlet is going to start blaring that the GOP has refused to make any counteroffer to the entirely reasonable offers of the WH.
Yeah, the GOP is gonna cave.
Hope not, but think so.
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