that led to the great recession in the first place. my question, which is what you ll say is if the president wins, taxes for wealthy americans have to go up, that s going to be the basis of any grand bargain on the budget deficit, taxes have to go up. yeah. we think that here s the recipe for deficit reduction package. it s obviously revenue now tax reform means president corporate tax rate, interested in getting rid of a lot of loopholes, lowering rates if we can. yes, the wealthiest american also have to spend a little bit more, along with entitlement reform. whether it s simpson-bowles, any independent economist who says what s the recipe for long-term fiscal package, it s at its core balance and fairness. that s been the barrier. the reason we weren t able to get a big deal last year was the insistence on republicans at all costs, and by the way it s not just on the deficit, what is their single economic idea? it s to cut taxes for people like mitt romney, and somehow ho
for the middle class, any time congress passes it. but this is a big difference. the republican philosophy, mitt romney s philosophy, the congressional republican philosophy are the same policies that led to the great recession in the first place. but my question let s get back to my question, which is what you ll say is if the president wins, taxes for wealthy americans have to go up, that s going to be the basis of any grand bargain on the budget deficit, taxes have to go up. yeah. we think that here s the recipe for deficit reduction package. it s obviously revenue now tax reform means president corporate tax rate, interested in getting rid of a lot of loopholes, lowering rates if we can. yes, the wealthiest americans will have to spend a little bit more, along with entitlement reform. whether it s simpson-bowles, any independent economist who says what s the recipe for long-term fiscal package? it s at its core balance and fairness. that s been the barrier. the reason w
he reached a compromise agreement with democrats to race taxes as part of a deficit reduction package. a package that included 70% spending cuts that the democrats didn t like and 30% tax increases that president bush and the republicans didn t like, but the president compromised on it. that s what bipartisan compromise used to look like in washington. and then, the worst thing in the world happened. well, the worst thing for the future possibility of tax compromises between democrats and republicans. president bush lost his re-election bid to the democrat, bill clinton, who campaigned on a middle class tax cut. that s right, the democrat got to campaign against a tax-raising republican president, claiming that he, the democrat, would cut taxes when he was elected president. bill clinton won and then instead of cutting taxes, he actually proposed and the
before him. he reached a compromise agreement with democrats to race taxes as part of a deficit reduction package. a package that included 70% spending cuts that the democrats didn t like and 30% tax increases that president bush and the republicans didn t like, but the president compromised on it. that s what bipartisan compromise used to look like in washington. and then, the worst thing in the world happened. well, the worst thing for the future possibility of tax compromises between democrats and republicans. president bush lost his re-election bid to the democrat, bill clinton, who campaigned on a middle class tax cut. that s right, the democrat got to campaign against a tax-raising republican president, claiming that he, the democrat, would cut taxes when he was elected president. bill clinton won and then instead of cutting taxes, he
trillion, so now he sequester french for cut $1.2 trillion. this is failing how? but as long as congress remains unable to negotiate a deficit reduction package, grover s worse nightmare looms on january 1st, 2013, when the bush tax cuts are scheduled to expire, thereby delivering, without even a congressional vote, the biggest tax increase in history. the obama administration indicates that the president will veto an extension of bush tax cuts for the top income tax brackets. a senior white house official told the associated press, he won t sign a full extension. we re going to be in the position at the end of next year where the president is saying, i m not going to sign a full extension, but send me the middle class tax cuts. friend of the show, ezra klein,