Tax Cut Would Reduce Funds for Democrats’ Priorities

The "impending" passage of the Republican-backed tax cut will "sweep money out the government's door that Democrats would rather funnel to" initiatives such as "broader Medicare benefits," the AP/Richmond Times-Dispatch reports. If the proposed $1.35 trillion, 11-year tax cut passes, it would reduce the government's total projected $5.6 trillion surplus in the next decade by about 30%, and if the Medicare and Social Security surpluses are not factored into the equation, the tax cut would reduce the surplus by 63%, according to the paper. The budget outline already passed by Congress includes $500 billion for "contingencies," not including a Medicare drug benefit, but "that pool could be drained quickly with higher defense spending or deeper tax cuts," the AP/Times-Dispatch reports. Leon Panetta, former chief of staff to former President Clinton, said, "There's no question [the Republicans have] won the race to the surplus pot." The Senate is expected to vote on the tax bill today; the House has already passed the package (AP/Richmond Times-Dispatch, 5/21).