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Open Book Test: Will House Dems Vote to Beef Up ObamaCare's Job-Killing Tax Hikes?
Cuban Leader Delivers Key Endorsement For Skittish Dems Amid Mounting Evidence of How ObamaCare Is Already Destroying American Jobs
Washington
(Mar 25)
With their government takeover of health care already under fire, Washington Democrats received a much-needed boost today from an unlikely – albeit unsurprising – source. Cuban leader Fidel Castro endorsed ObamaCare, calling it “an important battle and a success” for the nation’s 44th president. Castro’s endorsement comes just hours before House Democrats are set to beef up ObamaCare’s job-killing tax hikes, Medicare cuts, Medicaid mandates, taxpayer-funded abortions, and backroom deals.
The good news for Democrats is that, with all that we already know about how ObamaCare is destroying American jobs, this vote on the reconciliation bill is essentially an open-book test. At his weekly press briefing with reporters, House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) outlined how Washington Democrats’ ‘reconciliation’ bill makes ObamaCare even worse:
“The reconciliation bill that the House will likely consider later today, will make it even worse. It has more cuts to Medicare, more tax increases – both significant increases from the bill the President into law on Tuesday. It triples the job-killing employer mandate tax to $2,000 per employee. And it still has 160 boards, bureaus, commissions – including a new army of IRS staff. And it still forces taxpayers to fund elective abortions.”
Here’s what the reconciliation bill means for the American people:
Tightening the vise on employers and small businesses. The final bill nearly triples the job-killing tax on employers who do not offer health coverage to $2,000 per employee. Employers from coast-to-coast are already announcing the losses they will incur on account of ObamaCare’s job-killing mandates. Even a Democratic governor is expressing buyer’s remorse upon discovering the impact these tax hikes will have on a major employer in his state.
Making it even harder to save, invest and hire. No amount of changes or legislative tricks can hide the true destructive nature of this bill: $17 billion in new taxes on Americans who do not comply with the individual mandate, $52 billion in new taxes on employers that do not provide health coverage deemed “acceptable” or “affordable” by government bureaucrats, and new taxes on capital gains, dividends and interest which will further stifle economic growth and job creation. Washington Democrats plan to hire an army of new IRS employees to collect these taxes and enforce these mandates.
Endorsing taxpayer-funded abortion. The final bill does not include the Stupak amendment language that would prohibit federal funds from being used to fund elective abortions. Both pro-life and pro-choice advocates agree that the executive order President Obama signed yesterday to put this issue to rest is “basically meaningless.”
Protecting backroom deals. The final bill includes a number of kickbacks, payoffs, and sweetheart deals that use money we don’t have to purchase support for controversial legislation, including the Louisiana Purchase, the Rocky Top Vote Swap, and a $100 million hospital earmark for the University of Connecticut.
Increasing the burden on cash-strapped states. The final bill shifts even more Americans onto Medicaid. CBO estimates that 1 million more Americans – totaling 16 million Americans – will get their coverage in the final bill from the federal program plagued with financial woes and contributing to state budget distress. South Carolina has already calculated that these unfunded mandates will cost the state $914 million. A grassroots revolt in dozens of states against this federal takeover is gaining momentum by the day.
Democrats in Washington have one last chance to step back from the brink. This vote is the point of no return. Republicans are fighting to repeal this government takeover of health care so we can replace it with reforms focused first on lowering costs for families and small businesses.
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