PPI - Radically Pragmatic
  • Donate
Skip to content
  • Home
  • About
    • About Us
    • Locations
    • Careers
  • People
  • Projects
  • Our Work
  • Events
  • Donate

Our Work

Middle-Class Tax Cut: The No-Brainer

  • September 15, 2010
  • Ed Kilgore

For all I know, by now House Democrats may have already made the informal decision whether or not to force a vote on extension of middle-class tax cuts and expiration of high-end tax cuts.

I understand that if the votes aren’t there, they aren’t there. But it will be extraordinarily disappointing if they decide against forcing the vote on grounds that it will make some of their Members “uncomfortable.”

This is clearly the last opportunity prior to November 2 for congressional Democrats to make an impression on voters, not only about their own priorities, but about what sort of policies we can expect if Republicans gain control of the House. The GOP has been able to disguise or draw attention away from their own agenda throughout this midterm election cycle. Making them vote against tax relief unless the bulk of it goes to upper-income Americans exposes their hypocrisy on taxes and on federal budget deficits at the same moment. And this strategy also happens to be very popular, as TDS Co-Editor Stan Greenberg is expected to personally explain to the House Caucus later today.

There are few true no-brainers is the complicated business of politics, but this may qualify. Having cynically enacted tax cuts scheduled to expire at a date certain in the future in order to disguise their impact on the deficit, Republicans are in no position to label that expiration a “tax hike,” particularly since millionaires will benefit like everyone else from the portion of their income that falls into the lower brackets.

No matter what happens in November, Democrats are going to have to begin forcing comparisons of the two parties and what they stand for going into the presidential cycle of 2012, lest that election become another “referendum” whereby Democrats assume total responsibility for an economic and fiscal situation they largely inherited. This tax vote is the perfect opportunity to begin that process.

This item is cross-posted at the Democratic Strategist

Photo credit: Andrew Higgins

Related Work

Op-Ed  |  September 11, 2025

Ritz for Forbes: Thanks To Trump, Adult Content Creators Could Pay Lower Taxes Than You

  • Ben Ritz
Op-Ed  |  August 29, 2025

Marshall for The Hill: Trump is Sinking, but Democrats Aren’t Rising — Here’s Why

  • Will Marshall
Op-Ed  |  August 8, 2025

Marshall for The Hill: In a Liberal Society, Equity is a False Idol

  • Will Marshall
Publication  |  July 30, 2025

Five More Problems With the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’

  • Alex Kilander
In the News  |  July 18, 2025

Marshall in The New York Times: The Seeds of Democratic Revival Have Already Been Sown

  • Will Marshall
In the News  |  July 17, 2025

Ainsley for ABC Radio National Breakfast: UK’s Labour Party suspends four MPs in rising rebellion over welfare policy

  • Claire Ainsley
  • Never miss an update:

  • Subscribe to our newsletter
PPI Logo
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Donate
  • Careers
  • © 2025 Progressive Policy Institute. All Rights Reserved.
  • |
  • Privacy Policy
  • |
  • Privacy Settings