Republicans: Extend All Tax Cuts

Republicans may have rejected an extension of unemployment benefits for 2.1 million Americans without work, but when it comes to giving tax cuts to the wealthy, the deficit can be damned: Senators Judd Gregg and Jon Kyl and House Minority Whip Eric Cantor are pushing for an extension of the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, with Kyl saying that the cuts should be extended regardless of how they affect the deficit: “You do need to offset the cost of increased spending, and that's what Republicans object to. But you should never have to offset cost of a deliberate decision to reduce tax rates on Americans,” Kyl argued. This bodes poorly for President Obama’s deficit commission, which is going to propose that three-quarters of future deficit reduction comes through reduced spending. That still won’t likely be enough for Republicans: “Since it includes tax increases, zero Republicans will vote for it,” Matt Yglesias writes. “But since it’s mostly weighted to spending cuts, most Democrats will reject it.” Democratic Senator Byron Dorgan, meanwhile, says Democrats are likely to preserve tax cuts for households making less than $250,000.