Extending tax cuts will funnel millions to Fox News pundits ... and G. W. Bush

According to Florida Rep. Alan Grayson, the Fox News pundits who advocate a continuation of the Bush era tax cuts will reap millions from the continued windfall. In a speech before the House of Representatives, he listed the annual numbers as:

• Rush Limbaugh - $2,689,135
• Glenn Beck - $1,512,352
• Sean Hannity - $1,006,352
• Bill O’Reilly - $914,352
• Sarah Palin - $638,352
• Newt Gingrich - $247,352

And finally:

• Former President G. W. Bush - $187,552

For the record, the annual median U.S. household income in 2008 was $52,029... less than 2% of Limbaugh's annual tax savings!

Grayson's point is simple. The argument for the tax cut extensions is based purely on personal greed. He says the tax cuts have done little or nothing to spur the economy or improve the employment picture.

What they have yielded, besides lining the pockets of those who have most fiercely defended them, is huge government debt, as detailed by the nonpartisan Office of Management and Budget in this article.

The bottom line: Tax cut advocates and deficit hawks in both parties can't have it both ways. Either continue the unsustainable tax cuts that mostly benefit the rich while allowing the deficit to rise, or allow the tax cuts to expire and thus cut the deficit. It's simple economics, folks.

View Rep. Grayson's speech here.