Romney’s Plan Will Place Greater Burden on Middle Class

Original Link: http://www.iowademocrats.org/2011/11/romney%E2%80%99s-plan-will-place-greater-burden-on-middle-class/

By Megan Jacobs

As Mitt Romney returns to Iowa today, eastern Iowa Democrats called out Romney today for not shooting straight with Iowa voters on his opposition to middle class tax cuts and his plans to cut taxes for large corporations, millionaires and billionaires.

“Mitt Romney has embraced extreme ideological approaches like Rep. Paul Ryan’s budget plan and the ‘Cut, Cap and Balance’ proposal. He would return American families to the failed economic policies that contributed to the years of rising inequality, stagnant wages, and eroding middle-class security,” said State Senator Pam Jochum (D-Dubuque), “When Romney last came to Iowa, he looked Sioux City voters in the eye and said he had a plan that would help middle class families, but the truth is he doesn’t. Romney has proposed an economic plan that places a greater burden on the middle class and the elderly, and instead of asking all Americans to do their fair share it continues to offer special breaks for large corporations, millionaires and billionaires.”

Romney opposes efforts to create jobs and prevent a recession. He opposes President Obama’s American Jobs Act plan, which will help restore economic security for the middle class now by extending the payroll tax cut for small business and middle class families- providing the typical household in Iowa, a tax cut of around $1,580. Romney has called the middle class tax cuts “temporary little Band-Aids” while his tax plan would provide a typical middle class family a tax cut of $54 a year.

Last week in Florida Romney was quoted as saying, “I’m proposing no tax cuts for the rich,” but the truth is Romney’s tax plans would provide tax breaks for large corporations, millionaires and billionaires, forcing the middle class to pay a higher share.

“Romney has proposed an economic plan that places a greater burden on the middle class and the elderly, and instead of asking all Americans to do their fair share it continues to offer special breaks for large corporations, millionaires and billionaires”, said State Representative Cindy Winckler (D-Davenport), “Much of Mitt Romney’s plan is a carbon copy of the House Republicans’ budget: it would wipe out investments essential to creating jobs and promoting growth and would leave millions of older Americans to fend for themselves by privatizing Medicare.”

On Friday in a Washington DC speech to a Tea Party event sponsored by the Koch Brothers, Romney announced his plans to cut taxes for the most fortunate Americans at the same time he proposed making reckless cuts to the very programs that help strengthen and build the middle class and provide security to seniors, children with disabilities and the most vulnerable Americans who are working harder and harder to make ends meet. Romney’s economic plan would save the billionaire Koch brothers $8.7 billion each.

Background

Video: Mitt Romney’s Spending Plan: Wrong for America, Wrong for the Middle Class

ROMNEY WOULD LOWER TAXES ON THE WEALTHIEST AND ADD TO THE DEFICIT

Romney Would Keep The Bush Tax Cuts For The Wealthiest Americans. “Mr. Romney said he would keep the Bush-era income-tax cuts unchanged. Mr. Obama wants the cuts, which were set to expire this year, to disappear for the wealthiest taxpayers.” [Wall Street Journal, 9/6/11]
* Extending The Bush Tax Cuts Is Worth $700 Billion to The Top 2 Percent. [OMB, The Budget for FY2012, Table S-2, pg. 173]

Romney Would Eliminate The Estate Tax And Repeal Health Care Reform. Romney “would seek a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution, cut non-security discretionary spending by 5 percent, eliminate the estate tax and undo the 2010 health care overhaul championed by President Barack Obama.” [AP, 9/6/11]

* Eliminating The Estate Tax Would Cost $178 Billion. The CBO/JCT estimates Mitt Romney’s proposal on the estate tax would cost $178 billion. [CBO, "Reducing the Deficit: Spending and Revenue Options, March 2011]

* Repealing Health Care Reform Will Increase The Federal Deficit By $127 Billion Over The 2012-2021 Period, Including Accounting For Removing The CLASS ACT. [CBO Director Doug Elmendorf Committee Testimony, 03/30/11]

….BUT ROMNEY OPPOSED OBAMA’S PLAN TO GIVE THE AVERAGE WORKER $1500 A YEAR IN TAX CUTS CALLING IT A “BAND-AID”

Romney Said Of The Payroll Tax Cuts In President Obama’s Jobs Act: “I Don’t Like Temporary Band-Aids.” At the Republican primary debate Romney was asked about President Obama’s economic plan. Goldman: “So you would be OK with seeing the payroll tax cuts?” Romney: “Look, I don’t like temporary little Band-Aids, I want to fundamentally restructure America’s foundation economically.” [Republican Primary Debate, Bloomberg, 10/11/11]
* Under Obama’s Plan A Person Making $50,000 A Year Would Get A Tax Cut Of $1,550 in 2012. “Under Obama’s plan, workers making $50,000 a year would see their take-home pay boosted by $1,550 next year; those making $100,000 would get $3,100.” [AP, 9/9/11 ]

ROMNEY’S PLAN WOULD ONLY GIVE A TYPICAL MIDDLE CLASS FAMILY A TAX CUT OF $54 A YEAR…

A Typical Middle Class Family Nationwide Making Between $40,000-$50,000 Would See An Average Tax Cut Of $54 if Romney’s Proposal To Eliminate Taxes On Capital Gains, Interest, And Dividends Were in Place in 2011. Over 70 percent of these families would see no benefit at all. [Tax Policy Center, 6/16/11]