Grimm: Extend Bush Tax Cuts for Wealthiest 2%

Conservative/Republican Congressional Representative Michael Grimm voted with the Republican-led House of Representatives yesterday to extend the expiring George W. Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% of Americans.

House Republicans want to reform the entire federal tax code to generate even more tax cuts, saying the choice is between "growth" and taxes.

Republican House Minority Leader Eric Cantor spoke of endowing people with income the "right to keep that money", rather than entrust it to Washington.

Democrats hold that the wealthy should pay at the same rate they did during the Clinton administration to help pay down the deficit. 

Tax hikes -- and deep spending cuts -- are set to kick in on January 1. The combined effect of the expiring Bush tax cuts and the spending cuts on the federal budget is about $600 billion.

The article from the Washington Post.