WASHINGTON - Sen. Kent Conrad, senior Democrat on the Senate Budget Committee, said Wednesday that some of the tax cuts enacted under President Bush might get "trimmed" if his party regains control of Congress.
Conrad and Rep. John Spratt, ranking Democrat on the House Budget Committee, sharply criticized Republicans for failing to adopt a budget or to pass any of the 12 annual appropriations bills.
"We face red ink as far as the eye can see, with the nation's debt continuing to grow out of control," Conrad told reporters at the Capitol. "The debt is skyrocketing, and there's been a failure among the Republicans themselves to arrive at a budget."
Conrad responded cautiously when asked whether Democrats would extend the tax cuts that Congress passed in 2001 and 2003 if they gain control of the House of Representatives or the Senate in the Nov. 7 elections.
The North Dakota Democrat said his party would likely retain "middle-class tax cuts" such as the child tax credit started under President Clinton and the repeal of the "marriage tax penalty" enacted under Bush.
But the senator added that Democratic lawmakers might have to revisit the broader income tax reductions that Bush pushed through Congress during his first 30 months in office.
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