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Cut, Balance and Grow strikes a major blow against the Washington-knows-best mindset. It takes money from spendthrift bureaucrats and returns it to families. It puts fewer job-killing regulations on employers and more restrictions on politicians. It gives more freedom to Americans to control their own destiny. And just as importantly, the Cut, Balance and Grow plan paves the way for the job creation, balanced budgets and fiscal responsibility we need to get America working again.
Rick Perry • Discussing his new plan for taxes, “Cut, Balance and Grow,” which has a name clearly worded to evoke the “Cut, Cap and Balance” plan that House Republicans tried to push through earlier this year. Perry’s plan, in simple terms: An optional 20 percent flat tax, with benefits for lower-income people who would not necessarily benefit from such a flat tax. Don’t like it? Keep your current tax rate. Unlike Herman Cain’s 999 Plan, this might actually have a shot at getting through Congress. And would you look at that? Right on cue, Perry suddenly has an endorsement from Steve Forbes, the guy who banked his entire campaign on the flat tax — twice! Cain’s gonna have some gimmicky tax plan competition at the next debate. source

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

We were planning on live-blogging the President’s primetime speech on the debt ceiling, but there wasn’t much to live-blog about. He didn’t support or reject any new policies, or endorse a specific strategy for raising the debt limit. Rather, the President doubled-down on the importance of avoiding default, reinforced hard distinctions between him and House Republicans, and make slight adjustments to his political positioning. He warned, in his most explicit language yet, of the consequences default would have for average Americans. He came out hard for progressive taxation, hammering the Republicans for refusing to consider raising taxes on the rich, and explicitly asked constituents to call their representatives in Congress and voice support for the White House’s “balanced.” In general, as was the case in his press conference last Friday, the President ended up sounding a whole lot more partisan than normal, but didn’t deliver any game-changers. source

Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

» The odds of this passing the Senate? Zero. The House has been known for their symbolic votes this term — ones which please the base but not won’t do much else. The bill cuts many Democratic investment priorities — but most notably, takes a long-term hatchet to Medicare. Not so much, kids. Not so much.

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

24 Oct 2011 22:37