The U.S. Senate approved on Wednesday a Democratic bill that would extend the George W. Bush income tax cuts to about 98 percent of all Americans, including small business owners, but not the wealthiest earners.
The measure passed the Senate on a vote of 51 to 48, after a Republican bill to extend the tax cuts for all earners was rejected.
The Senate bill would keep tax cuts the same for one year for everyone except individuals who earn $200,000 annually and households making $250,000. Persons making more than $200,000 would be taxed beyond that point at rates of 36% and 39.6% rather than the current 33% and 35%.
The Democrats’ measure, while laudable, stands zero chance of passing the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
President Barack Obama issued the following statement after the passage of the bill in the Senate:
With the Senate’s vote, the House Republicans are now the only people left in Washington holding hostage the middle-class tax cuts for 98% of Americans and nearly every small business owner. The last thing a typical middle class family can afford is a $2,200 tax hike at the beginning of next year. It’s time for House Republicans to drop their demand for another $1 trillion giveaway to the wealthiest Americans and give our families and small businesses the financial security and certainty that they need. Our economy isn’t built from the top-down, it’s built from a strong and growing middle class, and that’s who we should be fighting for.
