This press conference is from last week, before President Obama unveiled his budget proposal. The tax hike buried inside 'Chained CPI' has been highlighted here on Dkos, but I haven't found anyone reproducing the White House's acknowledgement that yes, indeed it is a tax hike. On the middle class.
The White House has confirmed that President Obama’s forthcoming budget contains an income tax increase on middle class Americans.
During a Friday, April 5 White House press briefing, spokesman Jay Carney replied “I’m not disputing that” when asked if a particular Obama budget proposal would raise income taxes on the middle class.
Here's the relevant part of the transpcript:
MAJOR GARRETT, CBS NEWS/NATIONAL JOURNAL: “A follow-up on Jim’s question -- you do not and the White House does not dispute that if the chained CPI were put in -- to be put into effect, it would raise taxes on middle-income Americans?”
JAY CARNEY: The chained CPI, which is a technical adjustment to how we measure the consumer price index --
GARRETT: But its practical effect would be --
CARNEY: Again --
GARRETT: -- to raise taxes on --
MR. CARNEY: I’m not disputing that, but I’m saying that it is not the President’s ideal policy. It is in a letter from the Senate Minority Leader requesting that it be part of a negotiation deal.
GARRETT: All right, I'm just saying you don’t disagree, that those things happen?
CARNEY: Right, but Major, and --
GARRETT: -- a tax increase?
CARNEY: -- let’s be clear, as we’ve said all along, that the offer was on the table. The President made that offer because he was hopeful that we would see commensurate willingness to compromise from Republicans. Unfortunately, we haven’t seen that.
So the White House thought that offering a tax increase on the middle class would get the Republicans to compromise.
GARRETT: And to critics who would say to this President, looking at this proposal, this is the last and possibly worst time -- from their point of view -- to raise taxes on the middle class, inflict benefit cuts on elderly on fixed incomes, even in the pursuit of deficit reduction, the President would say what?
CARNEY: The President would say that as part of a balanced approach that asks the wealthy and well-to-do and well-connected to contribute their fair share through tax reform, elimination of special tax breaks that average folks don’t get, that we can also include entitlement reforms that allow us to achieve deficit reduction in a balanced way and allow us to continue to invest in our economy in ways that will help it grow and create jobs.
So the way President Obama is justifying a middle class tax hike (at the worst possible time as Major Garrett correctly states (gag), is that the wealthy will pay their fair share? What kind of double speak is that?
And on Sunday the White House spokesman proclaimed Obama wasn't enacting Romney's economic plan. Well, taxes on the middle class, um yes he is.
The rich irony is that you have to get this report from Grover Norquist's website.
And who else is in favor of chained CPI? Paul Ryan.
Representative Paul Ryan says President Obama’s decision to include “chained CPI” in his latest budget is a “notable exception” to the otherwise status quo proposals in the document. And the budget-committee chairman is open to considering the policy.
“I want to take a look at it,” Ryan says of the proposal to change how the government calculates cost-of-living adjustments for Social Security and other federal benefits. “I think the president should be commended for leaning into an issue that is not popular.”
But not to worry! The House will never pass this budget.