I am not a fan of
debates. And I distrust all politicians.
Therefore I get super frustrated on nights like last night. I don’t believe anyone is going to be
completely truthful, that they will spin any factoid in their favor, and will
disparage their opponent at every turn with regard to the truth.
That being said…
I enjoyed a part of the debate
last night and have pulled part of the transcript:
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, I think — let's
talk about taxes because I think it's instructive. Now, four years ago when I
stood on this stage I said that I would cut taxes for middle-class families.
And that's exactly what I did. We cut taxes for middle-class families by about
$3,600. And the reason is because I believe we do best when the middle class is
doing well.
And by giving them those tax
cuts, they had a little more money in their pocket and so maybe they can buy a
new car. They are certainly in a better position to weather the extraordinary
recession that we went through. They can buy a computer for their kid who's
going off to college, which means they're spending more money, businesses have
more customers, businesses make more profits and then hire more workers.
Now, Governor Romney's proposal
that he has been promoting for 18 months calls for a $5 trillion tax cut on top
of $2 trillion of additional spending for our military. And he is saying that
he is going to pay for it by closing loopholes and deductions. The problem is
that he's been asked a — over a hundred times how you would close those
deductions and loopholes and he hasn't been able to identify them.
But I'm going to make an
important point here, Jim.
MR. LEHRER: All right.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: When you add up all the
loopholes and deductions that upper income individuals can — are currently
taking advantage of — if you take those all away — you don't come close to
paying for $5 trillion in tax cuts and $2 trillion in additional military
spending. And that's why independent studies looking at this said the only way
to meet Governor Romney's pledge of not reducing the deficit — or — or — or not
adding to the deficit, is by burdening middle-class families.
The average middle-class family
with children would pay about $2,000 more. Now, that's not my analysis; that's
the analysis of economists who have looked at this. And — and that kind of top
— top-down economics, where folks at the top are doing well so the average
person making 3 million bucks is getting a $250,000 tax break while middle-
class families are burdened further, that's not what I believe is a recipe for
economic growth.
MR. LEHRER: All right. What is the
difference?
MR. ROMNEY: Well —
MR. LEHRER: Let's just stay on taxes
for —
MR. ROMNEY: But I — but I — right,
right.
MR. LEHRER: OK. Yeah, just — let's
just stay on taxes for a moment.
MR. ROMNEY: Yeah. Well, but — but —
MR. LEHRER: What is the difference?
MR. ROMNEY: — virtually every —
virtually everything he just said about my tax plan is inaccurate.
MR. LEHRER: All right, go —
MR. ROMNEY: So — so if — if the tax
plan he described were a tax plan I was asked to support, I'd say absolutely
not. I'm not looking for a $5 trillion tax cut. What I've said is I won't put
in place a tax cut that adds to the deficit. That's part one. So there's no
economist can say Mitt Romney's tax plan adds 5 trillion (dollars) if I say I
will not add to the deficit with my tax plan.
Number two, I will not reduce
the share paid by high-income individuals. I — I know that you and your
running mate keep saying that, and I know it's a popular things to say with a
lot of people, but it's just not the case. Look, I got five boys. I'm used to
people saying something that's not always true, but just keep on repeating it
and ultimately hoping I'll believe it — (scattered laughter) — but that —
that is not the case, all right? I will not reduce the taxes paid by
high-income Americans.
And number three, I will not,
under any circumstances, raise taxes on middle-income families. I will lower
taxes on middle-income families. Now, you cite a study. There are six other
studies that looked at the study you describe and say it's completely wrong. I
saw a study that came out today that said you're going to raise taxes by 3(,000
dollars) to $4,000 on — on middle-income families. There are all these studies
out there.
But let's get to the bottom line.
That is, I want to bring down rates. I want to bring down the rates down, at
the same time lower deductions and exemptions and credits and so forth so we
keep getting the revenue we need.
And you think, well, then why
lower the rates? And the reason is because small business pays that individual
rate. Fifty-four percent of America
For me, this is about jobs
I kind of understood that. And I hope it’s the truth (you never can tell)
and I like his analogy about his boys.
chris
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