A popular plan no one wants
Fewer would praise Simpson-Bowles if they knew what's in it
Article by: EZRA KLEIN , Washington Post
Updated: December 9, 2012 - 5:51 PM
An important fact to keep in mind in the coming days: The "Bowles plan" that House Speaker John Boehner endorsed is not the same as "the Simpson-Bowles plan." It's not even the plan supported by its apparent namesake, Erskine Bowles, who insists that he was simply sketching out the evident middle ground between the members of the "supercommittee."
The Simpson-Bowles plan -- which Erskine Bowles does actually support -- occupies strange territory in Washington: Almost every politician professes to admire it, almost none of them is willing to vote for it and almost none of its supporters know what's in it.
So here, with an assist from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, are a few facts about the Simpson-Bowles plan. And remember: Simpson-Bowles is a centrist proposal.
1. Simpson-Bowles ends the George W. Bush tax cuts for income over $250,000. And note that it does that before it reforms the tax code. The expiration of the tax cuts is built into its baseline.
(More here.)
Updated: December 9, 2012 - 5:51 PM
An important fact to keep in mind in the coming days: The "Bowles plan" that House Speaker John Boehner endorsed is not the same as "the Simpson-Bowles plan." It's not even the plan supported by its apparent namesake, Erskine Bowles, who insists that he was simply sketching out the evident middle ground between the members of the "supercommittee."
The Simpson-Bowles plan -- which Erskine Bowles does actually support -- occupies strange territory in Washington: Almost every politician professes to admire it, almost none of them is willing to vote for it and almost none of its supporters know what's in it.
So here, with an assist from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, are a few facts about the Simpson-Bowles plan. And remember: Simpson-Bowles is a centrist proposal.
1. Simpson-Bowles ends the George W. Bush tax cuts for income over $250,000. And note that it does that before it reforms the tax code. The expiration of the tax cuts is built into its baseline.
(More here.)
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1 Comments:
It is interesting how people are running from what they thought they wanted. It reminds me of the phrase used over and over those from the left side of the aisle used over and over again, calling the Bush tax cuts, “Tax cuts for the rich.” I find it interesting that I no longer hear that phrase. Could it be that even the left has figured out that there are not enough rich people to solve our country’s fiscal woes? If the Bush tax cuts benefited only rich for years and years, what is the problem with letting them expire now?
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