Obama Talking Points Make The Rounds, Tax Changes Central Focus For Jobs

The White House has released early talking points on Pres. Obama’s jobs speech for tonight.  For a sneak preview, here is what the President will propose in his American Jobs Act:

• Cut taxes for small businesses, the engines of job creation, to help them  hire and grow;
• Put more money in the pockets of working and middle class Americans;
• Put more people back to work — teachers laid off from state budget cuts, veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, first responders, and constructions workers rebuilding our roads and bridges, and schools; and
• Help the long term unemployed, by helping them support their families while they look for work and reforming the system to better connect them to real jobs.

Obama’s talking points say that the jobs push will be "fully paid for by closing corporate tax loopholes and asking the wealthiest Americans to pay their fair share," although there is no dollar amount assigned to where that tax increase may begin. Most likely, Obama will push to allow for an expiration of the Bush tax cuts.

The tax increase/expiration approach is not likely to garner bipartisan support as a number of GOP lawmakers have said they oppose any tax hikes. We’ll remind you of our recent interview with Sen. John Boozman (R), who despite a number of questions on the topic, said tax hikes were off the table.

From our Aug. 15 interview:

Boozman said the discussion in Washington has focused on raising taxes on people — many owners of small businesses — who earn $250,000 a year. He also said the tax code should be revamped to “make it fair, make it simple” and reduce loopholes that allow giant corporations like General Electric to avoid paying taxes.

However, Boozman said taxing the super wealthy won’t close the deficit gap on a government that annually collects $2.2 trillion in revenue and annually spends about $3.7 trillion.

“I’m in favor of looking at anything. The reality is, that’s not where the money is at,” Boozman said when pressed about his support of raising taxes on the super rich.

Later in the interview, Boozman rejected any ratio of tax increases to spending cuts as a way to balance the budget and reduce the federal debt. During the Aug. 11 GOP presidential debate in Iowa, all candidates said they would oppose even a deal that called for a $1 tax increase for every $10 in spending cuts.

Echoing what most Republicans and Tea Party supporters say, Boozman said Washington has a spending problem and not a revenue problem. He said Congress needs to “reduce spending dramatically,” and that as he visits with constituents, none are telling him they are for higher taxes. He also said most economists say a tax increase “is not smart in the weak economy.”