Patch Chat: Should Bush-Era Tax Cuts for the Wealthy Be Extended?

According to The Huffington Post, Bush-era tax cuts—for those who make more than $200,000, and couples who make more than $250,000—will be the “single largest contributor,” to the nation’s debt by 2019, if the policy is renewed next year.

The breaks, along with the cost of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, would create almost half of the country’s debt in 2019, according to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities—The Huffington Post reports.

President Barack Obama renewed tax cuts for high earners last year, in a deal that extended cuts for middle-income earners and extended unemployment insurance. The president suggested that he would like to see the cuts for high-earners end in 2012, when it expires.

“[S]imply letting the Bush tax cuts expire on schedule (or paying for any portions that policymakers decide to extend) would stabilize the debt-to-GDP ratio for the next decade,” said the CBPP, according to The Huffington Post. “While we'd have to do much more to keep the debt stable over the longer run, that would be a huge accomplishment.” 

Read The Huffington Post’s story here and the CBPP’s report here.

What do you think?

• Should tax cuts for high-income earners expire?
• Is it fair to tax higher earners more?
Should high earners have to give more for the greater good?
• Is it fair to tax high earners more, in this specific economical situation?
• Should tax cuts for middle-income earners be extended or expire?

Tell us in the comments

Like us on Facebook (facebook.com/WhitePlainsPatch) and follow us on Twitter (twitter.com/WhtPlainsPatch)