Democrats Divide on War Tax
EmailABC News’ David Chalian Reports: Powerful Democratic committee chairmen in the House and the Senate have started calling for a war tax surcharge to help pay for the anticipated troops surge in Afghanistan President Obama is set to announce on Tuesday. Despite those efforts, the idea of “war tax” is one that is not likely going anywhere fast. It would have little, if any, Republican support and it also appears clear that moderate and centrist Democrats would also refuse to sign on with it. “At this point I would suggest not pursuing some kind of war tax,” said Andy Johnson, who serves as the national security program director for the centrist Democratic think tank “Third Way.” “I think it’s mostly for posturing purposes, there is a concern that you know, there’s not sort of shared pain with respect to our involvement in Afghanistan but the bottom line is this: We need to protect American and whether it’s done through deficit spending or whether it’s done through offset spending the first order of business is to get in place a strategy that will provide stability and security,” Johnson told us on ABC News’ “Top Line” today. “I think the war tax is a political not a realistic solution,” continued Johnson. “A non-starter.” It’s not just the cost that will prove challenging for President Obama to sell to a skeptical public. As the poll numbers reflect, there is little appetite among the American people for nation building in Afghanistan, a point not lost on Democrats. “Look, the objective here is a military objective. It’s one of national security and protecting American lives, it’s not brining fair and open election or the sort of democratic reforms that we may want to see in Afghanistan but are unlikely to actually occur over the next few years,” said Johnson. “We need to have a reliable partner. It could very well be that corruption is going to be a matter of fact in Afghan governance and politics for years to come; we need to deal with that and keep our eyes on the prize. We’re not there to nation build, we’re there to protect the American people and we need to have lasting security when we pull out and that doesn’t necessarily mean the sort of pristine democratic institutions that we are usually accustomed to,” he added. You can watch our entire interview with Third Way's Andy Johnson HERE:
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Why not just let this Andy Johnston write the article? All you do is quote him verbatim the whole way. Is he one of those “centrist democrats” that supposed invading Iraq, the Lieberdem, aka Bill Kristol lite, kind of “Democrats”?
Because if so, that means he has been WRONG each and every time he has opened his mouth over the last 10 years, just like Cheney, Wolfowitz, Feith, and their comrades over at “Third Way” and the “DLC”. They are responsible to their corporate paymasters, not the American people, and it is frankly embarassing you are giving him a megaphone to continue to spout his neoconservative foreign policy nonsense.
Why is it that when an employee is really really wrong once they are fired, but when neocons are really really wrong over and over and over they are given raises and additional time on ABC and NBC?
Posted by: Jack Abramoff | November 25, 2009, 3:08 pm 3:08 pm
Don’t you think military families have been “taxed” enough. If you are going to tax anyone, tax every American who is not or has not served in the military including reserve and guard over the past 8 years, including every senator, representative, lobbyist and White House staffer/official! Except for the military and their families, others have not truly suffered or felt the impact of the war!
Posted by: Doc | November 25, 2009, 3:24 pm 3:24 pm
The only people who have sacrificed during the past 8 years of war has been our military personnel and their families. During these years the rich even got a tax break so they would have more personal income! We have made ourselves the Selfish Generation compared to the all the sacrifices the Greatest Generation made during WWII. Does anyone remember all the rationing of gas, tires, food, etc. that affected their daily lives?
Posted by: MikeMo1947 | November 25, 2009, 5:22 pm 5:22 pm
They can’t be the Greatest Generation–not the way they parented the selfish brats of the 1960s. The extremists on the right and left are continuing to fight out battles that everyone under 45 DOESN’T CARE ABOUT.
When they were young, they wanted old people out so they could have good jobs. Now that they are old, they want everything given to them again. They spent and spent and saved nothing.
Posted by: JD | November 25, 2009, 5:48 pm 5:48 pm
They can’t be the Greatest Generation–not the way they parented the selfish brats of the 1960s. The extremists on the right and left are continuing to fight out battles that everyone under 45 DOESN’T CARE ABOUT.
When they were young, they wanted old people out so they could have good jobs. Now that they are old, they want everything given to them again. They spent and spent and saved nothing.
Posted by: JD | Nov 25, 2009 5:48:27 PM
You got that right!
Posted by: Jim Bob | November 25, 2009, 5:59 pm 5:59 pm
Just another example of how Obama is bringing this country together. Now you have American veterans fighting non veterans. Change you can believe in, along with the tooth fairy
Posted by: James Bucholtz | November 25, 2009, 6:10 pm 6:10 pm
Where is the story of our Navy Seals being charged with assault of a terrorist???????
The charges….giving the terrorist that burned and hung our contractors off the bridge…giving that sob a bloody lip.
Now there are formal charges to the Seals that captured. Good God! I am so sick and tired of these kid gloved, politically correct liberals. Get rid of all these progressive ####.
Posted by: neil | November 25, 2009, 6:10 pm 6:10 pm
neil | Nov 25, 2009 6:10:28 PM…..From what I heard, the ‘brass’ had a choice not to pursue these Navy seals. But, I guess they’re currying favor for a coveted white house position.
Posted by: deanbob | November 25, 2009, 6:41 pm 6:41 pm
The rich started the war in Iraq because they wanted Iraqi oil. They used 9/11 as an excuse. Years before 9/11, the rich chattered about invading Iraq and turning its oil reserves over to Halliburton.
The rich helped themselves to a massive tax break just after they started the war. They made billions of dollars over fradulent and bloated defense contracts. In fact a subsidiary of Halliburton actually provided troops with tainted water because it cost too much to provide clean water.
Rich kids do not fight in Iraq. In addition, the rich have cut the budgets of state colleges and universities, so that the poor will be forced to do their fighting for them.
During World War II, the tax rate for the rich was 88%. Since the rich are not fighting in this war, it’s not too much to ask them to sacrifice their wealth – after all, they made much of it by cheating the government.
This whole controversy proves that the rich have no sense of patriotism. They don’t give a rat about America. They want America to fail.
Posted by: William Joseph Miller | November 25, 2009, 6:46 pm 6:46 pm
That’s smart. Another tax. Encourage more businesses and investment?
Posted by: deanbob | November 25, 2009, 6:48 pm 6:48 pm
The real battle is not Afghanistan. It’s global warming. And since the rich are not going to invest in the green technology we need, they we need to tax them to develop that technology.
It’s oil revenues that keep Al Qaeda going. If the world stopped using oil, al Aqaeda would be out of business. Obama has stated an interest in an exit strategy= That’s what we need.
If we want to destroy al Qaeda, we cannot do it in Iraq or Afghanistan. We must find alternatives to oil. We must adopt green technology. That’s the only way to win the war against terrorism
Posted by: William Joseph Miller | November 25, 2009, 6:49 pm 6:49 pm
JD and Jim Bob – I am surprised you two don’t know why they were called the Greatest Generation or who they are. The ones that are still alive are at least 80 yrs old now. They grew up in the times of depression and sacrificed almost every aspect of their lives for America. They were responsible for creating the best of times for America from the end of WWII until recently. That period allowed Americans of all types to prosper as America never had before. Most of your complaints were about their kids and grandkids that grew up during this period of plenty like you did. So I guess your only criticism is that the Greatest Generation was not that great because they only sacrificed by not having gas, tires, clothing, food, they gave their lives in WWII, worked too many hours, and they seldom divorced because it was not the right thing to do. That means nothing because you claim their kids did not turn out perfect. So what are they going to say about your generation in thirty or forty years? What was your generation given wealth and opportunity? And what did you leave for the next generation of Americans?
Posted by: MikeMo1947 | November 25, 2009, 7:39 pm 7:39 pm
WHAT generation did REV JEREMIAH come from?
Posted by: rking | November 25, 2009, 8:04 pm 8:04 pm
First this government spends the country into oblivion on two illegal and un-necessary wars and then has to borrow money from the Worlds largest Communist nation to survive, then this government bails out the worst of its over extended banks and auto makers and businesses and now this government looks to have decided to openly be going into the business of WAR against other sovran nations and now wishes to add to the burden with a War Tax to finance further misadventures….Jesus #### Christ, what is wrong with these people?
Posted by: CC | November 25, 2009, 8:47 pm 8:47 pm
If you remember, not such a long time ago (i.e., in 1763) the British defeated the French and their Indian allies in the French and Indian War (1754-1763). The result was British control over much of North America. But the war had cost England a great deal of money and Parliament decided it was time for the Colonies to pay a share for their own defense.
To raise money, Parliament passed the Stamp Act in 1765. This law required the purchase of tax stamps to buy paper…
The Colonists were outraged. After years of “Salutary Neglect” wherein Colonial taxes were not collected by the British, the new policy was unwelcome… To make the story short,
the Americans reacted by forming organized political groups such as Committees of Correspondence and the Sons of Liberty. The whole thing resulted in a revolutionary war and the Declaration of Independence.
It looks like now our “leaders” would like to come the whole circle with the idea of the “war tax’.
Posted by: H1N1hysteria | November 25, 2009, 10:34 pm 10:34 pm
Just another example of how Obama is bringing this country together. Now you have American veterans fighting non veterans. Change you can believe in, along with the tooth fairy
Posted by: James Bucholtz | Nov 25, 2009 6:10:08 PM
_____________________________________
what does this have to do with Obama? He didn’t propose the tax you buffoon. Your ignorance is only superceeded by your inability to comprehend what you read!!!!
Posted by: skip | November 26, 2009, 1:04 am 1:04 am
I find it interesting how Conservatives complain about leaving our children to pay for programs they don’t approve of but have no problem burdening society for generations to come on their wars. Can someone please explain the mentality so we all understand?
Posted by: dk | November 26, 2009, 1:23 am 1:23 am
The Great One tripled our dedt, with tax breaks to the top 1%, Bush 1 added another 2 trillion, Bush 2 added 5.6 trillion to the dedt, what is so Conservative about the Conserative Party, I’m in Iraq now, haven’t fought next to any millionaires as of yet, And yes it’s time to pay for what we spend,Warren Buffet, said he pays 14% taxes after his loop holes, on average the top 1%, pay that also, time to close these loop holes, make them pay their fair share, I’d love to pay 14% income tax, maybe I could use the other 14% to put my daughter into college!!
Posted by: m.bridges | November 26, 2009, 9:19 am 9:19 am
Yet another tax, what happened to Obama’s promise to bring home our troops? I’ll never vote for another Democrat.
First and foremost levying a “war tax” on our service members is repulsive and abhorrent. Military families are already making the ultimate sacrifice especially with Obama’s idiotic rules of engagement.
We already pay taxes so our “brilliant” government can run their programs. Enough is enough. I never wanted us in Iraq so tax the 75% of morons wanting this war.
Obama and his cohorts need to go.
Posted by: SM | November 26, 2009, 12:33 pm 12:33 pm
I am embarrassed by this democrat in-fighting. Another Democratic purity test? Taxes are good! Har-de-har
Posted by: jerry | November 28, 2009, 8:53 am 8:53 am
How about a tax on “slander” articles
on Palin in the last year, retroactive?
That would dissolve our current deficit
and allow the Libs to start screwing it up again by New Year’s day.
Posted by: grizzlybare | November 28, 2009, 10:22 pm 10:22 pm