Smaller Package
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have played down prospects for a broader agreement to slow the growth of the U.S. national debt, which is now at $17 trillion.
They are instead looking at a package of no more than $70 billion to $100 billion to replace the automatic spending cuts for a year or two. Given the more limited nature of such a deal, revenue has no place in it, say Republicans, who also say Democrats are recycling “loopholes” they’ve unsuccessfully sought to use as bargaining chips in past budget negotiations.
“All these proposals the Democrats are putting out there are things there might be some support for if it were in the context of tax reform,” said Senator John Thune of South Dakota. “It’s going to be very hard for Republicans to vote for tax code-related revenue” as part of a budget conference, said Thune, the Senate’s No. 3 Republican. “Every time you close a loophole you’re raising taxes on somebody.”
‘Which Ones’
Democrats say there must be at least some revenue as part of even a smaller-scale deal to replace the automatic budget cuts, known as sequestration, Murray said in an interview.
“What I want to know from Republicans is which ones they are willing to put on the table to help solve this?” Murray, of Washington state, said, urging the other party to come up with its own options for wiping out tax breaks.
“Revenues need to be part of the picture,” said Senator Angus King, a Maine independent who caucuses with Democrats and sits on the panel.
Democrats say allowing U.S. companies to deduct their expenses when they send their plants overseas hurts American workers.
“When somebody gets a write-off from moving their plant overseas, that’s the kind of spending in the tax code we ought to stop,” said Senator Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat on the committee.