Rep. Johnson: Republicans are only Roadblocks to Middle Class Tax Cuts

Democrats Fight for Tax Relief for All Americans, While Republicans Hold Middle Class Tax Cuts Hostage to Extra Tax Breaks for the Top 2 Percent

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Hank Johnson (GA-04) voted to extend tax cuts for 100 percent of Americans and opposed the Republican plan to deliver extra tax breaks to the richest two percent and force the middle class to pay the price. Rather than join Democrats to provide tax relief to working families, Republicans decided to leave town for a month and let taxes rise on all Americans at a time when the economy can least afford it.

“Extending middle class tax cuts will ensure fairness for the middle class, create jobs for our economy, and offer certainty to families, businesses, and the budget,” Rep. Johnson said. “Democrats voted to give every American tax relief; now, the only roadblocks standing between the middle class and a tax cut are House Republicans.”

The Senate already passed middle-income tax cuts for households earning up to $250,000 a year. But Republicans opposed the measure, preferring to hold the economic security of the middle class hostage to additional tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans, while protecting tax breaks for Big Oil, special interests, and corporations that ship jobs overseas.

Instead, Republicans voted to give tax cuts to the richest two percent – a policy that explodes our national debt by with a cost of nearly $1 trillion over 10 years. The Republican plan raises taxes on 25 million middle class families by an average of $1,000, while giving an extra $160,000 tax break to Americans making more than $1 million per year. Even some of our men and women in uniform and their families would face a tax hike; for example, an Air Force Staff Sergeant with eight years of service and married with three children would see a tax increase of more than $1,100 under the Republican bill. The Democratic measure protects our military families.

The Republican bill will have real consequences for families in Georgia. House Republicans’ refusal to extend the middle class tax cuts means a typical middle class family of four would see taxes rise by $2,200 on January 1, 2013. This unfair tax hike would affect 114 million Americans, including millions of Georgia’s families.

“Americans cannot afford a Republican plan that borrows from China, explodes the deficit, and makes the middle class foot the bill,” Rep. Johnson added. “The top two percent doesn’t need extra tax breaks, and our country can’t afford them. It’s time for Republicans to enact a proposal the President will sign: tax cuts for the middle class.”

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