Tweet
Michele Bachmann says tax cut hurts Social Security
Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann on Friday criticized congressional action that will extend a cut to federal payroll taxes for an additional two months.
Bachmann, a U.S. representative from Minnesota, has long opposed the temporary tax cut, which is currently in effect and intended as an economic stimulus to bolster consumer spending. About 160 million working Americans pay the tax, which is typically 6.2 percent but will remain at 4.2 percent under the extension.
A family making $50,000 a year takes home roughly an additional $40 in every paycheck because of the cut.
“It was a mistake a year ago and it’s a mistake today,” Bachmann said of the tax cut in Chariton.
Congress reached a deal on the tax cut extension late Thursday and finalized it Friday morning. Bachmann’s House Republican colleagues had opposed the extension for several days, but relented under heavy pressure from Democrats and fellow Republicans in the House and Senate.
“This is a reason why I’m running for president, because D.C. is obviously broken,” Bachmann said of the congressional maneuvering that resulted in the tax-cut extension. “It’s not listening to the people here in Iowa.”
Bachmann’s opposition to the tax cut stems from its intended purpose. The payroll tax funds the Social Security Trust Fund, the government account that pays out retirement and disability benefits under Social Security. Bachmann argues that the cut endangers the funding for Social Security benefits and forces the government to borrow additional money to make up the forgone revenue.
She has called for rewriting the tax code to lower rates for most people but also to require all workers to pay income taxes. The nation’s debt-and-deficit problems should be solved with reductions in federal spending, she argues.
“The point of all this is we need to prioritize our spending correctly,” Bachmann said Friday.
Bachmann also touched on the wave of violence in Iraq during her Friday news conference, suggesting that President Barack Obama, a Democrat, acted too hastily in removing combat troops from the country earlier this month.
“We’ve also seen that the president misunderstood Iraq and the consequences of pulling our troops out right now,” Bachmann said. “While we’re thrilled that troops are home, that they can be with their families, we also see that this precipitous action has resulted in tremendous sectarian violence.”
A coordinated series of bombings killed dozens in Baghdad on Thursday.
Bachmann’s comments Friday came on the eighth day of her 10-day tour of all 99 Iowa counties. She left the state Friday afternoon to celebrate Christmas with her family, but will return Tuesday.
Source: caucuses.desmoinesregister.com
Bachmann, a U.S. representative from Minnesota, has long opposed the temporary tax cut, which is currently in effect and intended as an economic stimulus to bolster consumer spending. About 160 million working Americans pay the tax, which is typically 6.2 percent but will remain at 4.2 percent under the extension.
A family making $50,000 a year takes home roughly an additional $40 in every paycheck because of the cut.
“It was a mistake a year ago and it’s a mistake today,” Bachmann said of the tax cut in Chariton.
Congress reached a deal on the tax cut extension late Thursday and finalized it Friday morning. Bachmann’s House Republican colleagues had opposed the extension for several days, but relented under heavy pressure from Democrats and fellow Republicans in the House and Senate.
“This is a reason why I’m running for president, because D.C. is obviously broken,” Bachmann said of the congressional maneuvering that resulted in the tax-cut extension. “It’s not listening to the people here in Iowa.”
Bachmann’s opposition to the tax cut stems from its intended purpose. The payroll tax funds the Social Security Trust Fund, the government account that pays out retirement and disability benefits under Social Security. Bachmann argues that the cut endangers the funding for Social Security benefits and forces the government to borrow additional money to make up the forgone revenue.
She has called for rewriting the tax code to lower rates for most people but also to require all workers to pay income taxes. The nation’s debt-and-deficit problems should be solved with reductions in federal spending, she argues.
“The point of all this is we need to prioritize our spending correctly,” Bachmann said Friday.
Bachmann also touched on the wave of violence in Iraq during her Friday news conference, suggesting that President Barack Obama, a Democrat, acted too hastily in removing combat troops from the country earlier this month.
“We’ve also seen that the president misunderstood Iraq and the consequences of pulling our troops out right now,” Bachmann said. “While we’re thrilled that troops are home, that they can be with their families, we also see that this precipitous action has resulted in tremendous sectarian violence.”
A coordinated series of bombings killed dozens in Baghdad on Thursday.
Bachmann’s comments Friday came on the eighth day of her 10-day tour of all 99 Iowa counties. She left the state Friday afternoon to celebrate Christmas with her family, but will return Tuesday.
Source: caucuses.desmoinesregister.com