Biden Attacks GOP Ahead Of Senate Tax-Cut Vote
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden urged lawmakers to extend middle-class tax cuts and aid for the jobless, ahead of a vote on the issue in the Senate Saturday.
Biden, delivering the weekly White House radio and Internet address because President Barack Obama was flying home from Afghanistan, framed the issue as Democrats sticking up for the middle-class while Republicans protected richer Americans.
"I just don't agree with the folks who've said we can't afford a lifeline for Americans who lost their jobs during the worst recession in generations, but we can afford to borrow hundreds of billions of dollars to extend tax cuts for the wealthiest two percent," he said.
The Senate will vote on whether to make Bush-era tax cuts permanent for families making less than $250,000.
Biden urged the Senate to approve the measure, which has already been backed by the U.S. House of Representatives, but it has little chance of passing due to a lack of support.
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden urged lawmakers to extend middle-class tax cuts and aid for the jobless, ahead of a vote on the issue in the Senate Saturday.
Biden, delivering the weekly White House radio and Internet address because President Barack Obama was flying home from Afghanistan, framed the issue as Democrats sticking up for the middle-class while Republicans protected richer Americans.
"I just don't agree with the folks who've said we can't afford a lifeline for Americans who lost their jobs during the worst recession in generations, but we can afford to borrow hundreds of billions of dollars to extend tax cuts for the wealthiest two percent," he said.
The Senate will vote on whether to make Bush-era tax cuts permanent for families making less than $250,000.
Biden urged the Senate to approve the measure, which has already been backed by the U.S. House of Representatives, but it has little chance of passing due to a lack of support.
"All of this finger-pointing is doing nothing to create jobs," said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. "It's a total waste of time."
People 'don't want show-votes'
Noting that unemployment had risen to 9.8 percent, he said:
"Democrats are responding with a vote to slam job creators with a massive tax increase. Millions of out-of-work Americans don't want show-votes or finger-pointing contests. They want jobs."
"The current leaders of Congress should not move forward with plans that were just rejected by the American people," added Senator Mark Kirk.
Republicans took back control of the House and increased their weight in the Senate in Nov. 2 congressional elections in which voters punished Obama's Democrats for tepid economic growth and high unemployment.
However, Democrats are already eyeing the 2012 elections and are eager to engineer a showdown over tax cuts in an attempt to depict Republicans as guardians of the rich.
"All those people out there in the tea party that are angry about the economics of Washington, they really need to look at this," Sen. Claire McCaskill., D-Mo., said Friday as Democrats took turns pummeling Republicans.
"They need to pull back the curtain and realize that you've got a Republican Party that's not worried about the people in the tea party," said McCaskill, who will be on the ballot next year. "They're worried about people that can't decide which home to go to over the Christmas holidays."
Negotiations will continue next week to strike a compromise over the tax cuts, which are set to end on Dec. 31, while finding more money for long-term jobless aid.
Unemployment payments, which had already been extended by Congress for to up to 99 weeks from a traditional 26 weeks, expire this month for 2 million Americans whose benefits have now run out.
Democrats want them extended for another year, and also want to make tax cuts permanent for families who make less than $250,00 a year, or $200,000 for individuals.
'Season of hope'
Republicans argue tax cuts must be made permanent for everyone to avoid sapping spending while the economy is still weak.
They also say Congress should have a plan to pay for the estimated $65 billion cost of extending jobless aid, in order to avoid adding to the country's high and rising debts.
Three weeks before Christmas, Biden stressed it was not the time to sever support for those in need.
"Cutting unemployment insurance is not only not smart, it's not right either," Biden said. "That's no message to send in the season of hope."
Obama, who has asked Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Budget Director Jack Lew to represent the White House in talks that began Tuesday, has urged Congress to act before lawmakers leave town for the Christmas holidays.
Obama also wants Congress to ratify a new nuclear weapons treaty he says is vital for U.S. relations with Russia.
The White House says extending jobless aid is an important support for the U.S. recovery when it is hard to find work. The gloomy state of the labor market was underlined by data Friday that showed the jobless rate rising to 9.8 percent in November from 9.6 percent the month before.
"Friday's jobs report was a sobering reminder of that. While we saw another month of job growth in November, it just wasn't enough," Biden said.
Sources: MSNBC, Youtube
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