J. Smith: Democrats Ignore Their Own Warnings About Raising Taxes in a Recession
“It is obvious that adding new taxes would harm an already weakened economy and stretch family budgets to the breaking point,” warned Republican Leader of the House Committee on Budget and Ways and Means Member Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO) in a new op-ed for The Daily Caller. “What Congress should be focused on is promoting pro-growth policies that will raise wages, lower prices, and ultimately lift the economy out of recession.”
Democrats drove the economy into a recession and the new Schumer-Manchin “Inflation and Recession Act” worsens inflation and raises taxes on American businesses, job creators, and workers at the worst possible time.
Click here to read the full op-ed.
KEY EXCERPTS:
Even Democrats know raising taxes during a recession would shrink the economy:
- “During the 2007-2009 recession, Sen. Chuck Schumer, in a rare moment of candor, argued against raising taxes, saying: “You don’t want to take money out of the economy when the economy is shrinking.” In 2010, during his first campaign for the U.S. Senate, then-Gov. Joe Manchin did not mince words either: ‘I don’t think during a recession you mess with any of the taxes or increase any taxes.’
President Biden and Democrats’ denial drove the economy into a recession:
- “Washington Democrats first tried spending their way out of inflation; it seems they are now trying to tax their way out of a recession. You do not need a Ph.D. in economics to understand that this is a recipe for disaster.”
- “Instead of encouraging businesses to hire workers, add shifts, or expand facilities to restock bare store shelves, like Republicans did with the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, this bill will extend the supply chain crisis and force businesses to lay off workers.”
Lower- and middle-income earning Americans are the primary target in Democrats’ bill:
- “The Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT), Congress’ tax scorekeeper, found at least half of the new tax burden from the Democrats’ latest reconciliation bill will be borne by Americans making less than $400,000, with billions worth of new taxes falling on those earning less than $200,000.”
- “In the original version of this budget reconciliation bill passed by House Democrats last year, they greenlit the hiring of 87,000 new IRS agents — enough to fill Missouri’s Arrowhead stadium — to snoop into Americans’ bank accounts. According to JCT, up to 134 million taxpayers earning less than $400,000 would have their account information reported.”
READ: Brady on Manchin-Biden Bill: Attention Wal-Mart Shoppers–More IRS Audits Headed Your Way
READ: WSJ: Schumer-Manchin Deal is a Tax Increase on Every American