Prominent Democrats said six times that raising taxes during a recession was a bad idea, yet the Democrats are seeking to raise taxes on companies over the weekend.
While President Joe Biden’s economy entered a recession last month, he is pushing Congressional Democrats to ram through a reconciliation bill– so-called the “Inflation Reduction Act.” The bill imposes a minimum tax on corporations with over $1 billion in profits.
Democrats in the past have opposed raising taxes on corporations during a recession.
- In 2009, then-President Barack Obama stated, “You don’t raise taxes in a recession… The last thing you want to do is to raise taxes in the middle of a recession.”
FLASHBACK — Barack Obama in 2010:
“You don’t raise taxes in a recession.”
“The last thing you want to do is to raise taxes in the middle of a recession.”
Democrats in 2022 during the #BidenRecession: Let’s raise taxes! pic.twitter.com/K49IZW3WBx
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) July 28, 2022
2. In 2010, then-Gov. Joe Manchin (D-WV) said he did not “think during a time of recession you mess with any of the taxes or increase any taxes.”
Democrat Joe Manchin in 2010: “I don’t think during a time of recession you mess with any of the taxes or increase any taxes.” pic.twitter.com/pSvYpyOmwu
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) August 2, 2022
3. In 2008, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) opposed raising taxes in a recession. “If we’re in a recession and we’re in a difficult economic time, I don’t think Sen. Obama or anyone else is going to raise any taxes. You don’t want to take money out of the economy when the economy is shrinking,” he said.
4. Schumer reiterated his position again in 2008: “When the economy is in decline, you don’t want to raise overall taxes,” he stated.
5. “No one is going to want to raise taxes when we have a recession,” Schumer again insisted in 2008.
Chuck Schumer in 2008: “When the economy is in decline, you don’t want to raise overall taxes.” pic.twitter.com/cX63wvljmY
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) August 4, 2022
Chuck Schumer in 2008: “No one is going to want to raise taxes when we have a recession.” pic.twitter.com/QqUFjmlHuA
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) August 4, 2022
6. In 2008, then Sen. Biden clapped in agreement as Obama said “The last thing we should do” is raise taxes in a recession.
Barack Obama, during the 2008 recession: “In an economy like this, the last thing we should do is raise taxes on the middle class.”
Watch Joe Biden clap in agreement: pic.twitter.com/FtyZGGWg6L
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) August 3, 2022
The act, which is marketed as an inflation reducing measure, will further increase Biden’s 40-year-high inflation. “The supposedly game-changing legislative breakthrough that brought together Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) after months of negotiations over Build Back Better failed is cynically branded as a measure to counter the budget deficit,” Breitbart News reported. “This makes sense in a crass political way because inflation is the number one issue facing American families and is plunging the economy into a stagflationary recession”:
The first hint that this is not going to be an inflation reducing piece of legislation is that the bill includes a massive expansion of government spending. There is roughly $385 billion in spending on energy and climate change, according to the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Budget. There is $100 billion of new spending for health care in the form of expanded Obamacare subsidies and expanded prescription drug and vaccine coverage.
Democrats have not finalized the bill yet. Under Senate rules, the Senate parliamentarian must solve several issues with the partisan legislation, such as Medicare drug price negations, climate change, and health care provisions. Democrats are using reconciliation to get around the 60 vote filibuster that Republicans can use with a 50-50 split Senate.
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.
