American Crossroads and the Payroll Tax Fiasco
After weeks of bickering and doubt, Congress delivered a last-minute holiday tax cut extension to 160 million workers Friday along with further unemployment benefits for millions laid off in the nation's fierce recession and weak economic recovery. It was a convincing victory for President Barack Obama, a humbling retreat for House Republicans.
Back-to-back voice vote approvals of the measure by the Senate and House came in mere seconds with no debate, just days after House Republican leaders had insisted that more negotiations and a full-year bill were the only way to prevent an immediate tax increase on Jan. 1.
Steven Law of American Crossroads is urging the GOP to stay on offense:
The Obama economic strategy is a political strategy. Rather than govern and fix problems, this White House is going to throw up chaff, manufacture bright shiny objects, affix blame and create villains. It is vitally important that Republicans stay focused on the big-picture concerns voters have about our economy and this President’s gross mismanagement of it –and not get ensnared in Team Obama’s political gamesmanship.
Our message is simple: Obama’s big-spending, big-government ideas have failed. Obama has wasted money we don’t have, and is wasting time we don’t have to fix these problems. Obama has a reelection strategy, not a recovery strategy. And right now, what our country needs most is jobs, not more Washington-style politics.
