Obama Does the Math on Deficit Reduction

President Obama rolled out a plan on Monday to reduce the federal deficit by $3 trillion over the next decade by combining cuts to benefit rights and war savings with tax increases. He vowed to veto any bill that relies solely on spending reductions to address the deficit.

Tax increases for wealthy Americans and corporations make up $1.5 trillion of the package, part of which will come from an expiration of the Bush-era tax cuts. Reductions in health and benefit rights programs amount to $580 billion, with $248 billion coming from Medicare and $72 billion from Medicaid. The Obama administration said the change to Medicare would not result in any increase in the program’s eligibility age.

It is virtually impossible to imagine Republicans agreeing to increase taxes on the rich. Anti-tax conservatives are already attacking the plan as socially divisive. The president anticipated as much: “This is not class warfare,” he said. “It’s math.” –ARK

The New York Times:

Mr. Obama is seeking $1.5 trillion in tax increases, primarily on the wealthy and corporations, through a combination of letting Bush-era income tax cuts expire on wealthier taxpayers, limiting the value of deductions taken by high earners and closing corporate loopholes. The proposal also includes $580 billion in adjustments to health and entitlement programs, including $248 billion to Medicare and $72 billion to Medicaid. In a briefing previewing the plan, administration officials said on Sunday that the Medicare savings would not come from an increase in the Medicare eligibility age.

… $800 billion of the $1.5 trillion in tax increases would come from allowing the Bush-era tax cuts to expire as scheduled for wealthier taxpayers, while extending them for individuals making less than $200,000 a year and families making less than $250,000.

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