Jarrett: Obama Won’t Break Middle Class Tax Pledge
EmailSenior White House Counsel Valerie Jarrett told me this morning that the President will keep to his pledge not to tax the middle class to pass his health care package. “He’s confident that a bill will be passed consistent with his parameters.”
According to Republican Senator Charles Grassley, the Joint Tax Committee’s analysis shows taxes will go up for 46 million Americans making under $250,000 under the plan.
Democrats like House Majority Whip James Clyburn and AFSCME union President Gerald McEntee have argued consistently that the so-called Cadillac tax on high-priced health insurance plans, would amount to a middle class tax increase.
Jarrett said the outcome shouldn’t be prejudged before the process is complete, but, can Obama really keep his promise?
- George Stephanopoulos
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Valerie Jarret put George in his place this morning. What is he trying to prove by attacking the President?
Posted by: carol | November 1, 2009, 10:51 am 10:51 am
Jarrett had a bad case of the “hives” while you were questioning her. High definition television isn’t very forgiving…Hmmmm.
Posted by: Mary Yamagata | November 1, 2009, 10:53 am 10:53 am
The President already broke that promise when he raised taxes on tabacco, raised it 61 cents a pack and 130% on loose tabacco.
Posted by: Jean | November 1, 2009, 11:00 am 11:00 am
Obama may not blatantly raise taxes but he will let the Bush tax cuts expire with the same result.
Posted by: bct | November 1, 2009, 11:16 am 11:16 am
“Obama Won’t Break Middle Class Tax Pledge”
Nope, but he like Bush is breaking the middle class.
Posted by: Huh | November 1, 2009, 11:21 am 11:21 am
Re Carol’s comment…Isn’t it sad that whenevr a hard question is asked of this administration, it is conceived as an attack on Obama? How will we ever pin our legislators down to the facts if this attitude prevails?
Posted by: Joan | November 1, 2009, 11:34 am 11:34 am
He should raise taxes on the middle class, he should raise them on everyone. Over 40% of people pay zero national income tax – zero. How can ANYONE honestly support this? If Republicans want to start rebuilding some credibility on the budget issues, they will start pushing for rational taxes. American can’t take another 30 years of continuously cutting taxes and living on the national credit card, and anyone saying the answer is ‘cutting waste’ or ‘eliminating earmarks’ or something is just displaying their profound ignorance of where the budget is going.
Posted by: jhw539 | November 1, 2009, 11:58 am 11:58 am
Attack… give me a break, George’s questions were respectful, reasonable and relevant, its refreshing to see some one from a news organization other than Fox have the moxie to question the accuracy of anything this administration says.
Posted by: Rob | November 1, 2009, 12:03 pm 12:03 pm
Isn’t their strategy called conning or pandering to the majority for votes? And isn’t the stimulus like money spent to get a high? The stimulated high from cash for clunkers is wearing off and now they’re pushing for the next stimulated high. Real life is full of examples of things stimulated. Things that are artificially stimulated can’t maintain the high when there is no natural means to sustain it. The comment is “the outcome shouldn’t be prejudged before the process is complete,”. That is like telling us to ignore the rattlesnake’s rattle because they want to observe the agitation threshold of the snake and the affects of its bite. So telling us that we shouldn’t prejudge is like telling us to trust that they know best and that we must ignore the the facts of the matter. Most of us have raised kids and know just how familiar this is. They are trying to manipulate us into getting what they want then when the consequences come they’ll blame us for going along with them and that we didn’t try hard enough to stop them.
Posted by: TX_MBell | November 1, 2009, 12:12 pm 12:12 pm
Valerie Jarret lies as easily as Mr Obama does
Posted by: jopalooka | November 1, 2009, 12:14 pm 12:14 pm
Cap & Trade is an across the board tax increase on the American People.
Adakin Valorem | Nov 1, 2009 12:10:24 PM
Our utter dependency on Saudi Arabia and a somewhat stable Middle East is a proven tax on all the American people too. Ignoring the ‘commons’ cost doesn’t mean they don’t exist. We need a carbon tax to let the private market do it’s job of best optimizing our energy use and they money should go right to paying down the debt.
Posted by: jhw539 | November 1, 2009, 12:18 pm 12:18 pm
Due to the rapid expansion of entitlement plans we are working nearly HALF of the year before we start earning for ourselves now. George Will made a statesmanlike observation when he accurately and succinctly noted that “the reality is the Democrats have a very clear agenda, the unified theory of this administration,…every proposal the President has is to increase the number of Americans equally dependant on the federal government for more and more things and I don’t think the American people at the end of the day want that”!
Posted by: jopalooka | November 1, 2009, 12:30 pm 12:30 pm
Please clearly define the Presidents parameters. We have been burned already by presuming we had a mutual understanding of common terms and relative time frames. So far their actions are not consistent with the trust and interpretation of the majority of Americans. Which brings back the Clinton years when the definition of a certain word was obfuscated. So, sure there won’t be a tax hike under the presidents term since by the time one is necessary his term in office will be over. Then it will be the burden of the next administration to raise taxes to cover the time delayed burden of this administration’s agenda(s).
Posted by: TX_MBell | November 1, 2009, 12:35 pm 12:35 pm
Obama won’t keep his promise if “cap and tax” passes! It will pass down energy taxes to every item we purchase or consume.
And it’s all for a myth, anyone that has passed a science course should know that the oceans control atmospheric content and there is not a thing mankind can do to change that.
The House canceled an appearance of Lord Monckton to oppose Al Gore and his nonsense but n canceled that appearance to avoid embarrassment!
Posted by: Ed Taylor | November 1, 2009, 12:40 pm 12:40 pm
Wont tax middle class but your children will pay dearly.
Posted by: earl | November 1, 2009, 12:54 pm 12:54 pm
Inflation IS A TAX… Just ask Jimmy Carter!!!
Posted by: jafo | November 1, 2009, 1:21 pm 1:21 pm
Liar!
Posted by: Pennres | November 1, 2009, 1:33 pm 1:33 pm
I guess it all depends on what your definition of “tax increase” is.
Our government is no longer about black and white, but shades of gray.
Posted by: Tad111 | November 1, 2009, 1:41 pm 1:41 pm
Carol – “Valerie Jarret put George in his place this morning. What is he trying to prove by attacking the President?”
Evidently George didn’t get the memo that you don’t attach, nor question the policies of the President in any way, shape or form. To do so means you are a hate monger, or worse, a racist.
Posted by: Tad111 | November 1, 2009, 1:46 pm 1:46 pm
This administration’s officials have stretched the truth so often with word games, exagerations and high drama that anything they claim now seems like campaign talk. Jarrett is a radical social engineer who looks for power and fortune through the manipulation and victimization of the poor. That’s who we have running the country now.
Posted by: pam | November 1, 2009, 2:37 pm 2:37 pm
Just another lie from this administration. Do they think we are that bo bo the fools. How do you pay back a 1.4 trillion dollar deficit that is growing everyday without taxing the american people.
Posted by: jimmy | November 1, 2009, 2:38 pm 2:38 pm
Well that sure is a relief. I was afraid he would raise my taxes and I wouldn’t be able to afford that ocean view property in Nebraska I’ve heard about.
Posted by: Richard Cranium | November 1, 2009, 3:28 pm 3:28 pm
Won’t raise taxes on the middle class. They already have – the tax on cigarettes and tobacco (who are the primary consumers of tobacco? ). Does she think people are that stupid or forgetful? Or is it just arrogance?
Posted by: deanbob | November 1, 2009, 3:41 pm 3:41 pm
I have come to feel that George is developing into a good journalist. He is asking the appropriate questions and not backing down when people like Jarret try to muzzle him. In this case he was well prepared with the facts and didn’t back down when Val tried to end the discusion with a nonsensical admonition that we should just believe him, when so far he has done nothing to earn that trust. I know that george is a Dem but I give him credit for trying to be unbiased. Keep it up George and your audience will go up as well.
Posted by: Jim | November 1, 2009, 5:18 pm 5:18 pm
Yeah right!
Posted by: LongT | November 1, 2009, 7:28 pm 7:28 pm
George I hope you are beginning to see what the next three years are going to look like. They will lie, double talk, and avoid the tough questions because if their true agenda is revealed, WE THE PEOPLE will truly revolt. Your holding her feet to the fire is viewed by Liberals / Progressives as attacking the administration. If you really want to get on their bad side ask them why Obama’s college transcripts and records haven’t been released and when do they plan on releasing them. Be careful because this simple question will get you thrown into the Glenn Beck category. Thank you very much for not having Paul Krugman on the show this week, he is even worse than Olberman.
Posted by: dave | November 1, 2009, 9:08 pm 9:08 pm
Obama won’t raise ” taxes ” until after 2012 then watch out. Until then there will be different names for new taxes under the guise of value added taxes, global security taxes, social construction taxes, community advancement taxes, …
Posted by: dave | November 1, 2009, 9:13 pm 9:13 pm
Debasing the currency is at tax.
Allowing a progressive tax on income to remain intact through an inflationary cycle is a tax.
Trying to rein in health care costs while at the same time expanding coverage is a double tax (cut benefits to profit-making entities, and increase payouts to loss-leading entities).
Folks, it’s pretty simple… government demands are expanding at such a rapid rate that you and me both are feeling the pain each and every day. We are tired of being slaves to the government and we’re not going to take it anymore.
This country would be fine if not for the existence of its control hungry politicians, all wrapped up in a nice tidy package of “virtuous assistance for the people.”
Posted by: A | November 2, 2009, 5:12 am 5:12 am
As the interview progressed Valerie broke out in hives. It first started with her neck when she answered with rhetoric on working to pass policy in a partison manner. The hives spread to her face when asked about taxing the middle class. As the interview progressed I first felt sorry for her that she knew she was breaking out but when it spread to her face, it was comical that the more she talked more hives developed!
Posted by: Buzz | November 2, 2009, 10:07 am 10:07 am