A shorter post today, because nothing much happening on the Hill.  The President’s Debt Commission failed to garner the 14 votes out of 18 necessary this morning on the official commission report that would increase taxes by one trillion over the next 10 years.  The House passed last evening a bill that would increase taxes on families making more than $250,000 a year.  The Senate passed late last night a Continuing Resolution funding the government to December 18th.  Both the House and Senate have no votes scheduled for today, but the Senate has scheduled a debate on Saturday on the Obama version of only extending some of the 2001/03 tax cuts. Conservatives worry that the Senate will take up the fatally flawed New START Treaty as early as next week.

On Saturday, the Senate will commence a doomed debate on the House passed version of retaining tax cuts for those families making under $250,000 and individuals making under $200,000.  This is a structured debate and Reid is planning on using a parliamentary maneuver to block all amendments to the package.  The vehicle for debate is the House Message on H.R.4853. 

According to official Democrat website (Democrats.senate.gov):

Senator Reid then moved to concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R.4853, with a Baucus amendment #4727. The Baucus amendment #4727 includes the $250,000 tax cut extension plus several additional items such as UI extension, AMT relief, estate tax, 1099 repeal, making work pay credit, and others. Senator Reid then filed cloture on the motion to concur with the Baucus amendment #4727.

The amendment by Senator Max Baucus (D-MT) adds an extension of unemployment benefits, a patch for the Alternative Minimum Tax, an estate tax compromise, a repeal of the 1099 provision in ObamaCare that imposes burdensome paperwork requirements on small business and an extension of the “Making Work Pay” silly tax credit that President Obama included in the so called Stimulus package.  (Did anybody notice that the unemployment rate went up to 9.8% this month?). 

The Democrat website explains the vote on Saturday further as follows:

Senator Reid then offered the Schumer amendment #4728 to Baucus #4727. The Schumer amendment #4728 includes the tax cut extension for those making up to $1 million, plus several additional items such as UI extension, AMT relief, estate tax, 1099 repeal, making work pay credit, and others. Senator Reid then filed cloture on the Schumer amendment #4728.

Senator Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) idea is to apply tax relieve to those making under $1 million and imposes tax hikes on small business and job creators who don’t qualify under the Schumer approach.  After that Amendment was put in place on Thursday, Senator Reid (D-NV) again abused his authority as Majority Leader to block all Republican Amendments.  This act by the Leader dooms this debate to be a few cloture votes on Democrat ideas that will fail.

What do the readers of Red State think about pending tax increases on all Americans, the President’s Debt Commission and the New START Treaty?