Obama appears desperate to make a deal which includes permanently extended Bush tax cuts for those families making <250k and extended for two years the tax cuts for those making >250k
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40150244/ns/politics-white_house/
Looks like the GOP might be able to force his Obama into extending the tax cuts for all income brackets. If no deal is struck in the lame duck session, the GOP will be in the drivers' seat Jan 3 2011 - H.R. 1 will be reserved for extending the tax increases and the Dems can not afford to have the Senate block or Obama to veto the bill.
The GOP needs to go for it all.
Something inside of me really wants him to just say "the heck with it" and let ALL of the Bush tax breaks expire, then brag about making tough choices to cut the deficit. Brag that our tax rates are still among the lowest in the developed world, by a mile. He needs to attack that taxes always = bad meme head on to create needed ideological daylight between him and the House GOP. It would also avert any left wing primary challenges in 2012.
Taxes ARE always bad. It's not a meme.
No, not always:
1. Taxes to fund public infrastructure se also: roads, utilities, waterways, electrical grids, sewage treatment plants, public education, national parks etc- in almost all cases no rational individual or subgroup of individuals will actually build/establish these things because they know that they will accrueo only a tiny fraction of the benefitsPeople will voluntarily fund their construction. Taxes are unnecessary.
None of those things are desirable.
And you don't need taxes to have clean air and water.
See above.
All of those programs should abolished along with the State that implemented them.
None of the supposed benefits you speak of are really made possible by taxes. But even if they were, it's irrelevant. Taxes are ARMED ROBBERY. The State is a gang of criminal thugs, a mafia demanding its protection money under threat of violence. There is NEVER any justification for theft/taxation.