Kerry Calls for $25 Billion to Aid States

[Karmadillo]

http://abcnews.go.com/wire/Politics/ap20040105_780.html

Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry proposed Monday a $25 billion package to aid cash-strapped states and recharge the economy.

Kerry coupled his proposal with a series of efforts to end the drain of American jobs overseas, largely by shifting tax policies to reward companies keeping jobs in the United States.

Most polls have shown Kerry in third place in the race for Iowa's leadoff caucuses, trailing Howard Dean and Dick Gephardt. Kerry has stepped up the pace of his campaign in recent weeks and was seeking to draw attention with a high-profile speech touting his efforts to boost the economy.

In remarks prepared for delivery Monday, the Massachusetts senator downplayed recent reports of economic improvement, arguing that most workers haven't felt any change.

"In an economy that grew 8 percent last quarter, the average American got to bring home an extra 3 cents for every hour of work," he said. "That's the slowest wage growth in 40 years."

more...

[Hep]

1. How you gonna pay for it JK,

particularly while allowing medicare to grow out of control and refusing to repeal all of Bush's tax cuts?

Oh, and tax breaks to big corporations should be great for our economy!

Yeah, please keep posting reasons why not to support Kerry.

[Monte Carlo]

3. The same way we always pay for these things....

... a little careful budget maneuvering.

Hey, let's not get all snippy about tax breaks to corporations. It's called "business", and I think Dr. Dean would recognize that.

Bush's tax cuts to those who need it are minute, but symbolic. We can pay for a lot with the cuts for those who don't need it.

[Hep]

5. Now it's about Dean?

So Kerry offering tax breaks to corporations is "business" and Dean offering tax breaks to corporations is evil. Gotcha. Any more useful info for me?

[Monte Carlo]

7. Dean offering tax breaks is evil, of course.

Or more likely he's attracting business, too. Don't get ahead of yourself.

[Hep]

9. Just pointing out yet another ridiculous double standard

as shared by Dean Opponents.

Except Kerry is talking about doing it on a National scale, while Dean was looking out for Vermonters.

[cindyw]

10. I don't think so.

Medicare

Dean plan: He will cut growth in Medicare.

Dean Truth: He will cut the amount the government pays for Medicare. The cost will continue to grow and the burden will fall on Seniors. Classic republican move. It's like saying you will curb the growth of education, by refusing to fund the needs of schools.

Kerry truth: Kerry will not allow the burden to fall on Seniors while we fix the problem. He will protect them by continuing to fund medicare at the necessary rate. His health care plan will instead attack the problem at it's root core and bring down the rate of medicare costs and in effect the need to fund outrageous growth in Medicare.seniors are protected in the transition

Bush's Tax Cuts

Dean plan: Return tax rates to Clinton 2000 levels.

Dean truth: he will reinstate higher tax rates, marriage penalty and the child tax credit at a time when the middle class is hurting. The higher expenses that thus far have offset the benefit of the tax cut will be an even bigger burden on the desperate middle class when these afore mentioned cuts are gone. His claim of offsets by a health plan is not likely to help given that it may not take effect in time to protect those who are hurting the most. It is also important to note that Clinton raised taxes on the higher income levels first. He allowed the protection of the middle class in his adjustments to fix the deficit.

Kerry Truth; Kerry believes that the damage caused by the Bush tax cuts came from the upper end cuts. Kerry fought the tax cuts because they would cause a situation where the middle class would not be able to handle even the fair rates set up by Clinton. Kerry's plan will protect the middle class while we readjust the tax code to a fair level. Kerry rightly asks why this economic class should should go into personal debt further for even the minimum year it would take for expenses to go back down.

Outsourcing

Dean plan: Sorry what plan?

Kerry Truth; Kerry offers tax incentives to corporations who keep jobs here or who create them here. Finding win-win situations for the worker and the company is how we are supposed to run the country. Corporations are not bad because they exist. They are bad when they hurt workers through poor wages and job loses and our country as a whole through denying tax payments by relocating in Bermuda. Kerry looks for a way to bring companies back to America, while putting Americans back to work. Given Kerry's long history of fighting for workers rights and environmental health protections, I think we can be sure that the fight for workers will extend further than this plan. This is good for Americans who are jobless. It will bring manufacturing back to the south where people are hurting massively. Why should a corp. not be rewarded for good behavior and punished for bad. That is the Kerry way.

Bush/Republican Way: Bring Corporations back to USA by allowing them to save money through polluting. Opening up forrests to timber companies. Opening protected lands to oil drilling. rewarding companies who make money in the stock market by downsizing workers and their wages, with dividend tax cuts.

If we cannot really see who the enemy to prosperity for all is, we cannot fight him.

[Monte Carlo]

2. Kerry makes a great (dis) connection between GDP growth and wage growth.

In an economy that is supposedly recovering, wages have been mildly swelling at best. Even our low inflation rate is hampering it. Keep at it, John.

[TLM]

4. Why John.... didn't that huge middle class tax cut take care of it?

Dean has been saying we need to get rid of that Bush tax fraud because it drove up costs on states. Dean said there was no middle class tax relief because local taxes, tuition, and health care costs all went up.

But Kerry attacked that... and yet now he is saying we need 25 billion to help pay for those costs... the same costs Dean says cancel out that middle class tax cut.

Good to see Kerry is as full of crap as ever.

[Hep]

6. Moreso than ever

We're going to have to nail his feet to the floor to get him to take a stand and stick with it.

[Monte Carlo]

8. Not along with the huge upper-class cut, it didn't.

That is the kicker - the middle class got peanuts compared to upper-class. But, they still did get some cuts which does provide stimulus. There is a disconnect between among these rising costs in the public sector and Bush's tax cuts - related, but not direct.

[cindyw]

11. It was the upper end that hurt not the lower end.

Even if you believe that the middle class part of the Bush plan was wrong, I cannot understand why you believe that families should finance the higher expenses on their credit cards while Dean fixes Bush's mess. Will Dean's tax plan simultaneously lower property taxes, lower tuition and bring down all the other stuff?

How long will I have to put those expenses on my credit cards? Will Dean mandate the federal government make my payments for me? What if I go bankrupt trying to cover the higher expenses while Dean makes the tax code "fairer'. I could afford the Clinton tax rates when we were in a good economy, but now that Bush has reallocated the wealth to the wealthier, my family is living in the margins. Will Dean answer my phone when the debtors call?

[JI7]

14. those in the top aren't paying their "fair share"

the right wing hates that term because it's very true .

[sandnsea]

13. Well exactly

Help get the States in good shape. Don't hurt the working people more than Bush has already hurt them. A doctor's code is "first do no harm". Taking away working people's tax cuts would do harm. We don't need to hurt people to energize the economy. And why in the world can Dick Gephardt create true universal health care repealing all the tax cuts and Dean can't?? Between the truth about the tax cuts in general, and Wes Clark's great tax plan today, Dean is finished. He's going to be headed back to Vermont in time to get in a few days of skiing, we know how much he'll like that!

[Karmadillo]

12. Kick

n/t

[maddezmom]

15. one more for JK

:kick: