Democrat budget puts economy and future generations at risk
March 15, 2008
The proposed Democrat budget fails the basic test of fiscal responsibility to the American people. Facing a slowing economy and soaring cost of living, American families have to tighten their belts and carefully budget their hard-earned money. But not House Democrats. Instead of reining in spending and preventing tax hikes on the American people, it is clear that Democrats are proposing a budget that includes the largest tax hike in American history, tens of billions in new Washington spending and no meaningful reform to the generational crisis of entitlement spending. Hiking taxes on the middle class in order to finance new wasteful spending is the height of fiscal irresponsibility.
The Democrat tax hike is the largest tax increase in American history. The Democrat budget includes a massive, broad-based, job-killing $683 billion tax increase on working families and small business entrepreneurs – all to finance wasteful new Washington spending. Nearly 116 million taxpayers will see tax hikes under this proposal. The average Massachusetts taxpayer will incur an increase of $3,652 in Federal taxes under this proposed budget. In order to get our economy moving again, we must stop the Democrat tax hike in its tracks and instead cut taxes for middle-class families and small business owners.
Republicans proposed a budget that would provide new tax relief for the middle class. Stopping the Democrats’ scheduled tax hikes on middle-class married couples, retirees and workers is critical to ensuring the long-term economic prosperity of working families. These pro-growth policies will strengthen our workforce, grow our economy, and keep America competitive.
Washington has a spending problem, not a revenue problem. While families across America are forced to tighten their budgets to cope with skyrocketing energy costs, increasing health care costs, and coming Democrat tax increases, House Democrats are once again proposing tens of billions more in new federal spending. Washington politicians and unelected bureaucrats do not know how to spend American tax dollars better than taxpayers.
Republicans proposed a budget that would enforce real spending restraint. The federal government should not spend one penny more than it needs to. Taxpayers deserve real fiscal accountability in Washington, and we should balance the federal budget without raising taxes on the American people.
Republicans proposed a budget that would provide for an immediate moratorium on earmarks. The immediate earmark moratorium House Republicans have called for is a significant step towards putting to rest the fears of hardworking taxpayers concerned with how their money is being spent in Washington. Not only have Democrats so far refused to join Republicans in this effort, they have offered no solution to the broken earmark status quo.
Democrats have turned a blind eye to reforming runaway entitlement spending, again. As the recent Medicare ‘trigger’ legislation highlights solvency challenges, the Democrat budget fails to adequately address runaway entitlement spending, and presents a critical obstacle to a balanced budget. This budget proposal was another opportunity for Democrats to make good on their promises of fiscal responsibility. Failing to address entitlement reform only saddles the next generation with crushing debt while risking future benefit cuts and massive tax hikes. Every child born in America each day is handed a mortgage of nearly $500,000 thanks to the unfunded obligations made to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. This is a critical generational issue, and to that end, Republicans presented a budget that would implement real entitlement reform.
History has time and again demonstrated that lower taxes create strong economic growth. The case for across the board tax cuts was made in the following statement to the American people:
“A bill will be presented to the Congress for action next year. It will include an across-the-board, top-to-bottom cut in both corporate and personal income taxes. It will include long-needed tax reform that logic and equity demand … The billions of dollars this bill will place in the hands of the consumer and our businessmen will have both immediate and permanent benefits to our economy. Every dollar released from taxation that is spent or invested will help create a new job and a new salary. And these new jobs and new salaries can create other jobs and other salaries and more customers and more growth for an expanding American economy.”
This was not a speech by Ronald Reagan, George Bush or any other Republican. This message was delivered to the American people on August 13, 1962 by President John F. Kennedy. It’s too bad that today’s Democrats have refused to listen.
Posted by Rick Barton



