Obama Seems More Interested in Politics Than Reducing Unemployment

The country is looking to President Barack Obama for leadership, but an announcement to raise taxes by $1.5 trillion indicates the administration is more concerned with earning easy political points than actually tackling our national debt or promoting much-needed job creation.

Tax increases will punish job creators, slow investment and perpetuate an economic environment of uncertainty. Americans need jobs, and Washington should be passing policies to encourage private sector growth, not punish it.

Additionally, the president’s second stimulus will be paid almost entirely by raising taxes and permanently capping itemized tax deductions for some Americans, and Wisconsin taxpayers will be hit particularly hard.

Wisconsin has one of the highest state income and local property tax burdens in the U.S., according to the non-partisan Tax Foundation, and as a result, residents rely on itemizing their deductions more than other states. This tax increase will hit Wisconsinites, who will reach that 28 percent cap much faster, and feel the impact in their wallets much more than in other states. 

Back in December, the president praised the House and Senate for preventing a $700 billion tax hike saying: “The bipartisan framework that we’ve forged on taxes will not only protect working Americans from seeing a major tax increase on January 1st; it will provide businesses incentives to invest, grow and hire.”

In a complete reversal of that position, the president now threatens to veto any deficit reduction bill that does not include new taxes.

Political posturing won’t expand our economy. Although I — and many of my colleagues in the House — have fundamentally different beliefs than the president regarding how Washington can help the economy grow, there are policies that both Obama and Republicans in Congress have agreed on in the past.

House Republicans have strongly argued that pro-growth tax code reform should close special interest loop holes while flattening and simplifying the tax code in a revenue-neutral manner. Obama at least mentioned his support for lowering our corporate tax rate to be competitive with other countries and attract investment and job creation here.

The president has also indicated his desire to move forward on three free-trade agreements — Korea, Panama and Colombia — that have been languishing for years. These trade agreements would create American jobs and make it easier for our companies to export and sell their products. It is time for the president to send the agreements to Capitol Hill so Congress can pass them.

Unemployment remains unacceptably high. Our national debt threatens to stifle future economic growth and will burden our children and grandchildren if we do nothing.

Wisconsinites, both workers and employers, will stand to lose with this tax plan. Increasing taxes will kill jobs, not create them. They will stifle our economy, rather than generate growth, which would actually be a sustainable, long-term increase of revenue. I am disappointed Obama missed this opportunity to provide serious solutions for our most challenging problems and instead reverted to campaign-style attacks.