Reassign the wealthy's Bush tax cuts to the middle/working classes.

[gulliver]

That puts the money where it will be spent, creating a jobs stimulus. Also, it doesn't "increase the level of taxation on the American people." It just changes who pays the taxes while keeping the level of Bush tax cuts the same.

This would be no worse on the deficit than Republicans have shown they are currently willing to accept, so they have no room to complain about the deficit.

They may try to make the case that they prefer the wealthy to get tax cuts rather than the vast majority of other American taxpayers. That's fine.

[Warpy]

1. No, end them completely

I don't know if you've noticed, but they caused a massive shortfall to the treasury over the last 9 years. The deficit is projected to drop 18% next year, just from ending those giveaways to the plutocrats.

Only when the shortfall is reduced can anyone think of creating the public works jobs that will stimulate the economy by providing jobs while building the infrastructure the next wave of industrial development will be based upon. The deficit hawks would scream bloody murder and they'd be partially right.

Still, what really needs to be done is to restore the progressive income tax, with a confiscatory rate on the real grabbers. The Pentagon budget needs to be heavily trimmed and empire has got to go. Until and unless those things are done, any recovery will be only partial and only temporary.

[gulliver]

3. Brainstorming for a political answer to GOP's "don't raise taxes"

I know there is a large deficit, and I consider eliminating the Bush tax cuts only for the wealthy very defensible politically. I would even prefer it from a policy perspective. But it is politically vulnerable to the charge of "raising taxes during a recession (or just after one)" That's not minor, in my opinion.

So one way to make keeping the Bush tax cuts unpalatable for the GOP would be to make them all middle and working American tax cuts. The GOP would then be in a position of fighting against a tax cut proposal. And it could just be a proposal, just something to help underscore the GOP's bias toward the wealthy and deficit irresponsibility (when the wealthy stand to lose money).

[Warpy]

4. Giving in to the howling mob on the right is the worst thing they can do

whether it's an Islamic cultural center in NYC or ending tax cuts for hoarder plutocrats. Sometimes you just have to do the right thing and let them scream.

They'll wear themselves out eventually.

After all, they didn't give a shit when we screamed about what those tax cuts were going to do to the country, did they?

[TheKentuckian]

2. No thanks. Tax cuts are weak stimulus and our needs are many