Republicans, long criticized by Democrats as a party that coddles the rich, are now eyeing a handful of proposals that target millionaires on subsidies, tax deductions and other federal benefits.
In both chambers, lawmakers are considering legislation introduced by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and Rep. James Lankford (R-Okla.) to deny unemployment insurance benefits to millionaires. Coburn is also proposing cuts to farm subsidies for the wealthy while other lawmakers are looking to cut direct payments to farmers altogether. The House-passed GOP budget earlier this year would further limit Medicare payments for wealthy senior citizens ? and some members are now discussing applying a similar measure to other entitlements.
Continue ReadingIn the House, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) said he?s looking for a co-sponsor for a bill that would implement a new means test for Social Security, which would reduce benefits for wealthier seniors by as much as half of their current payment. GOP supercommittee members are said to be offering to limit tax deductions typically claimed by upper-income brackets, but only if Democrats agree to permanently lower their tax rates ? a charge unlikely to temper the criticism that the party favors the rich.
It?s not exactly a full-throated embrace of tax hikes on the affluent, but these small measures show a tinge of populism creeping into Republican rhetoric, and an acknowledgment that constant Democratic attacks over income inequality may be having an impact.
The proposals amount to largely nickel-and-dime savings, unlikely to make a significant dent in the federal deficit. An analysis by the left-leaning Center for Economic and Policy Research this year argued that means-testing on Social Security that limited benefits to the wealthy would save only a fraction of a percent of benefits. Citing government data, Coburn said that millionaires earned more than $18.6 million in unemployment benefits in 2008, and rich farmers won $49 million in farm subsidies.
Democrats are skeptical of these efforts, arguing that they aren?t borne out of fairness but instead are part of a long-standing GOP push to dismantle the popular entitlement programs.
?They don?t like these programs; they?ve never liked these programs,? said Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio). ?Whenever they?ve been in the majority, they?ve tried to undercut them.?
Still, the symbolism is unmistakable. Economic policy toward the rich is one issue area with which, broadly speaking, Democrats have lately fared far better in the polls. A recent New York Times/CBS News poll found that nearly 70 percent of the public believes that GOP policies favor the rich, compared with 29 percent of voters who believe the Obama administration?s policies are tilted toward the wealthy.
The Occupy Wall Street movement has generated enormous media attention for its protests across the country as it tries to highlight income inequality ? so much so that the language is creeping into Republican talking points and interviews.
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