Page 9 - Buffett Rule News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

Today, the u.s. senate held a vote, which came out 56-38. and the side with the 38, that side won. because that is the upside down logic of democracy in the united states senate. and the bill at issue is exactly the kind of thing you'd expect to result in a lopsided 18-point margin. it would have allowed an estimated 25 million americans to refinance their student loans at lower interest rates, which wouldn't cost the government money, but would cut into the profit the federal government is currently making off of student loans. and that reduced revenue, that would have been paid for by instit...

In these parts of the budget. that's already been done, so the sequester is on top of this. the question is whether people like senator mccain, senator lindsey graham, who have real concerns and understandably with the very deep cuts on the military side, which are also across the board and are affecting military readiness, whether they will then say, look, we need to come together to replace the sequester and we're willing to look at cuts in other areas of the budgets, for example, i've proposed we get rid of excessive direct subsidies. but we've also said, and you started your program about ...

So-called buffett rule, because the way to deal with this in the long-term is deal with the deficit in a balanced way. republican colleagues don't want to do that. that's been a fundamental problem. >> you mentioned the defense part of the cuts, the deal was everyone's going to hate it because half the cuts come out of nondiscretionary, half comes out of nondefense nondiscretionary, half come out of defense. okay, that hasn't proven to be the case. i mean, are you surprised by how little leverage the defense cuts have seemed to give democrats to get out of the sequester? >> chris, i think the ...

That's already been done, so the sequester is on top of this. the question is whether people like senator mccain, senator lindsey graham, who have real concerns and understandably with the very deep cuts on the military side, which are also across the board and are affecting military readiness, whether they will then say, look, we need to come together to replace the sequester and we're willing to look at cuts in other areas of the budgets, for example, i've proposed we get rid of excessive direct subsidies. but we've also said, and you started your program about the different polls showing di...

Having to work two or three jobs in order to make ends meet. and now seeing their health insurance costs spike. i think there's a lot of problem with what he's proposing. >> what do you think of that so-called buffett rule? that individuals making more than $1 million a year are required to pay at least 30% income tax? >> well, again, he had the opportunity to put that into law before, the opportunity to do it in the fiscal cliff discussions. and i just don't see that catching traction here. it didn't catch traction in the senate, i don't believe. and so i'm not sure that's even a starter. >> ...