Sens. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) and John Hoeven (R-ND) told President Joe Biden on Monday night that they are opposed to increasing the corporate tax rate to pay for his proposed $2 trillion infrastructure package as the President calls on Republicans to put forward an alternative plan by the middle of next month.
OF course… WHY shouldn’t corporations continue to benefit more than they contribute. Only the GOP would support Corporate and 1% tax decreases and think they can get away with it. AND… likely they can; their rubes have proven it time and again.
Wonderful message from the President. Basically, he’s calling their bluff to their faces. Are you part of the solution or are you the problem? If you need more time, then clearly you haven’t been doing your job. These are serious times and we need individuals with rational thoughts - not Republican Party psychosis. Oh, and by the way, the timer is on… What say you?
Go Joe!!
We’ve had four years of repeatedly being told it was “Infrastructure Week”; they could just bottle up all those great ideas and distill them down and have an instant counterproposal - if that bullshit actually ever existed.
It won’t be a negotiation. He doesn’t think you’ll be able to come up with a proposal that your caucus can agree on, and he is almost certainly right. He just thinks it will take a month for you to realize all of that.
Once the republican alternative predictably fails to materialize, it will get a lot easier to bring Manchin along. And this keeps things on the early-July timeframe he floated a week or two ago.
After a serious and cordial meeting where Biden solicited ideas for negotiation on this bill GOP Senators told the media, “Joe Biden is a Socialist whose dog bites people, so we will vote no on everything.”
You can’t say it must be paid for and then nix the ways to pay for it. Besides, borrowing for long-term projects is actually totally justified. As Mitt knows, that’s how every company does things; that’s why corporate bonds exist.
That said, there should be wide agreement on a major crackdown on the shifting of profits to low-tax jurisdictions. Are we really to presume that a major share of Apple’s profits are generated in Luxembourg? The Cayman Islands? Bermuda?
lol - Mitt Romney not wanting to raise corporate tax rates is as close as the GOP comes to taking a principled position.
Bingo.
This is all theater to get Manchin/Sinema onboard for budget reconciliation. If Republican’s could agree on an infrastructure plan, they would have done so in four years under Trump. Just like their Obamacare alternative, the Republican infrastructure bill is a mythical creature.
Clock is now ticking on the GOP side. Tick-tock.
Set’s up a good message that forces journalists to analyze what is happening in the Republican aisle.
This might be interesting.
So Mr. President, while you wait for Republicans who are playing you like an old piano, how about getting back to dinner table issues for low and middle income Americans?
Come on Joe…deliver!
Hi! To find out what I can do, say @discobot display help.
It will be interesting to see where Mitt ends up on this point. It would have a much bigger negative effect on his net worth than an increase in corporate taxes.
PS - 100% agree that long-term assets should be paid with long-term debt. Current 30-year T-bill interest rate is 2.3%. If they want to slap a modest toll on some bridges and roads to pay some of the debt service, fine by me, but no public/private partnerships with private profits paid for by public debt and public assumption of risk.
Biden should never lead (or even follow-up with) suggesting “compromise”. I don’t know if Biden actually said that or Romney is just putting words in his mouth (I don’t trust Romney or any R in negotiations). Biden can emphasize and message about “working together with Republicans to do what America needs”, but that’s as far as he should go until the Republicans agree to actually VOTE for whatever compromise they hash out. Otherwise, it’s just Rs acting in bad faith and taking advantage of D naivete.
How about this “compromise”? Instead of raising corporate taxes, corporations can issue warrants to the federal government which the Treasury can sell on the open market. Corporations love issuing stock options and such to executives, they can certainly give them to the people’s (and their) government as incentive to help with the infrastructure they rely on. Or they can just give cash if they prefer.
GOP proposal:
Tax cuts for the wealthy, no broadband expansion, cut food stamps and other welfare for the struggling masses, less medical care, and all of the other GOP priorities for the past, oh, I don’t know, FOREVER!!!
Biden/Dem response:
"Um…blow us!!!
OT, but Tena darlin’, if you’re listening:
HAPPY 4/20!!!
Has anyone tested how raising taxes on working people would play with Mitt and his little pal?
For the R’s, Infrastructure Week is always two weeks from now. Maybe we need a few more of them to get involved in the asphalt and concrete businesses.
One could say the same thing on the Republican “Healthcare Plan” with which they want to replace the ACA.
