Obama Proposes New Taxes On Top Earners To Slash Deficit

President Obama made an impassioned appeal to Republican lawmakers to support his latest deficit reduction plan, details of which had already been released to the press by the time he took the podium on Monday morning.

(Click here for the White House’s summary of the plan)

Speaking in the White House Rose Garden, the president said his proposal represents a balanced approach to reigning in the nation’s bloated debt level while at the same time providing a shot in the arm to a fledgling economy.

“It’s a plan,” he said, “that reduces our debt by more than four trillion dollars, and achieves these savings in a way that is fair, by asking everybody to do their part so that no one has to bear too much of the burden on their own.”

Obama added that the measure would fully offset his jobs bill, a $447 billion plan that includes a mix of tax cuts and tax credits and spending on public works projects.

Like everything these days, the biggest challenge for the president will be getting Congress to support the plan. Republicans, led by House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), have already drawn a line in the sand over tax increases, which happen to comprise $1.5 trillion of the total savings found within Obama’s measure.

In a statement put out on Sunday, Ryan called the plan an example of “class warfare” — referring to Obama’s idea to raise tax rates on those making more than $250,000 per year. The president’s plan also includes the so-called “Buffett rule,” a nod to billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who has come out in support of raising investment taxes on those making more than $1 million per year.

The president, in his remarks this morning, pushed back strongly against Ryan’s assertion.

“I reject the idea that asking a hedge fund manager to pay the same tax rate as a plumber or a teacher is class warfare,” he said. “I think it’s just the right thing to do.”

Republicans will also likely accuse Obama of using gimmicks, such as counting $1 trillion in new cuts from ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, to inflate total savings. However, as the Associated Press noted on Monday, Ryan included those future savings in his budget proposal earlier this year.

Highlights From Today's White House Gaggle

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney addressed reporters on a range of key issues this morning, from previewing President Obama’s jobs plan speech today in North Carolina, to yesterday’s special congressional elections in Nevada and New York, both won by Republicans, to reports suggesting that the White House inappropriately rushed millions of dollars worth of stimulus grants to energy company Solyndra, which would later go bankrupt.

The following notes are courtesy of today’s White House travel pool reporter, Carrie Budoff Brown of Politico:

Carney spoke with reporters for about 15 minutes on poll numbers, Solyndra and special elections

Highlights of the gaggle:

In his remarks, the President will announce a new memorandum directing agencies to accelerate their payments to small businesses. The goverment pays $100 billion to small businesses annually. Under the new policy, the government will cut goal in half, from 30 days to 15 days. The idea came from the jobs council.

On Bloomberg News poll showing 51 percent of Americans don’t think the jobs plan will lower unemployment: “I think that means half the American people based on that poll believe it will help create jobs and grow the economy. … The American people want Washington to take action.”

More of a sales job needed from the president?

“We are not done pressing Congress and reaching out to the American people.”

Reax to the special elections. How can they be viewed as anything other than a referendum?

“Special elections are often unique and their outcomes don’t tell you very much about future regularly scheduled elections.”

“You can make those predictions and look foolish in 14 months or not, I’m simply saying we do not view them it way (as a referendum).”

In New York, it was a special case in a specific district in a low turnout election, Carney said.

On Solyndra emails, did the admin act appropriately?

“What the emails make clear is there was urgency to make a decision on a scheduling matter. It is a big proposition to move the president or to put on an event and that sort of thing so people were simply looking for answers about whether or not people could move forward.”

The admin sees nothing wrong with accelerating the process for a scheduling need?

“It had nothing to - and there is no evidence to the contrary - nothing to do with anything besides the need to get an answer to make a scheduling decision.”

Is the president happy with the approach?

Carney said he hasn’t discussed it with the president.

Asked if there an internal review, Carney said the administration has been cooperative with Congress.

White House Press Gaggle With Jay Carney

Aboard Air Force One- En Route Indianapolis, Indiana  

     MR. CARNEY:  I just want to mention a couple of things before I get started here.  First, as you all know, we had an employment report today that showed private sector payrolls increasing by 268,000 in April, which makes 14 consecutive months of private sector employment growth.  During that period, the economy added 2.1 million private sector jobs, including more than 800,000 jobs since the beginning of the year.

     This is obviously good news.  The February number was revised upwards to 261,000 private sector jobs created, and the March number was estimated upward to 231,000 — very, very solid; an average of approximately a quarter of a million private sector jobs created each month for three straight months. 

     We’re pleased about that.  We obviously have a lot more work to do.  The recession cost the American labor force 8 million jobs and we’re still digging ourselves out of that hole. 

     Next I’d like to just remind you about where we’re going today.  The President will first visit Allison Transmission, which is a leader in hybrid technology and the world’s largest manufacturer of fully automatic transmissions for medium and heavy-duty commercial vehicles, tactical military vehicles, and hybrid compulsion systems.  This visit is meant to highlight the President’s commitment to diversifying our energy requirements, to reduce our dependence on imported oil, and to ensure that we are leaders in clean energy technology in the 21st century.

     Finally, I just wanted to note that when we go to Fort Campbell today, the President and Vice President will be visiting with members of the 101st Airborne Division, which, if you don’t know, has such a remarkable history, beginning in World War II, where they were the first allied forces to set foot on occupied France territory; fought valiantly through World War II; were a vital division during the Cold War, Vietnam, Operation Desert Storm and then obviously in the Iraq war, and most recently in Afghanistan.  Extraordinary service, extraordinary sacrifice.

     What is less known is that it was elements of the 101st Airborne Division who were sent by President Eisenhower to Little Rock to ensure that the “Little Rock Nine” attended Little Rock Central High School.  It was also elements of the 101st that were sent to help make sure that James Meredith was able to attend as the first African American at the University of Mississippi.  So it is a noble, noble history.  And both the President and Vice President look forward to that visit.

     With that I will take your questions.

     Q    Jay, the President has said he doesn’t want to spike the ball.  But he’s speaking to troops.  Doesn’t he expect a celebratory mood there in the wake of bin Laden’s death?  And does that kind of go against that mood that he’s trying to — a non-gloating mood?

     MR. CARNEY:  Well, I don’t expect you’ll hear the President spiking the ball or gloating when he speaks to troops returning from Afghanistan today.  The point he will make is that while the successful mission against Osama bin Laden was an historic and singular event, it does not by any means mean that we are finished with the war against al Qaeda.  The fight goes on.

     And one of the reasons why the President refocused our resources and attention on the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, increased our commitment there in terms of troops — which these troops represent — is because he believed very strongly that al Qaeda central was the number one target — should be the number one target of that effort.

     He’s going to speak to these troops to thank them for their service.  They have fought valiantly and incurred significant casualties in that effort.  So there’s nothing — there’s no intent to gloat at all in that regard.

     Q    Is he meeting with members of the teams that carried out the operation to get Osama bin Laden?

     MR. CARNEY:  What I can say is that he is meeting with special operators — some special operators who were involved in that, but that is all I can say.

     Q    On the bin Laden operation, Al Arabia is reporting that al Qaeda is now — may not come as a shock — threatening to attack the U.S. in retaliation for killing bin Laden.  Is the President aware of that?  And what’s his thinking on that?

     MR. CARNEY:  Well, we are aware of it, seen the reports.  What it does do, obviously, is acknowledge the obvious, which is that Osama bin Laden was killed on Sunday night by U.S. forces.

     Q    Is there any more concern now that there’s been —

MR. CARNEY:  We’re being extremely vigilant.  You can ask questions of the Department of Homeland Security as well, but the — we’re quite aware of the potential for activity and are highly vigilant on that matter for that reason. 

One of the things we saw I think last night was the notice that DHS put out with regard to the information collected about the consideration at least of a terrorist plot against American railways back in February of 2010.  The fact that the world’s most wanted terrorist might have been considering further terror plots against the United States is not a surprise, but it reminds us, of course, that we need to remain ever vigilant.    

     Q    Jay, can you at least tell us whether this group of special operators that you referred to will include Navy SEALs or helicopter pilots —

     MR. CARNEY:  I’m not going to say anything more about that.  It is extremely important that I say nothing more.

     Q    If we’re done with the bin Laden questions, or are you not?  On another matter, the Republican congressional leaders appear to be backing away from attempting to pass their Medicare plan prior to the 2012 election it’s widely reported today.  What does the President think about that?

     MR. CARNEY:  Well, I would say simply that the talks that the Vice President led yesterday, the initial meeting of the members of Congress and team from the administration, was productive.  And we certainly think that it’s a good thing if those who are participating in those negotiations understand that in order to achieve compromise, we need to find common ground. 

     We obviously have — the President has laid out his plan, and there are elements of stark contrast with the House Republican’s budget that passed.  What we’re looking for now is where we can find some common ground to achieve a goal that Republicans and Democrats share, which is reducing the debt significantly, getting our fiscal house in order and, as the President sees it, while making sure that we protect the investments we need to protect in order to continue to grow the economy, continue to create jobs and educate our children.

     Q    Does the President have any reaction to the report today that CEO pay is up 25 percent over last year  —

     MR. CARNEY:  I haven’t heard him react to that, no.

     Q    Jay, can you tell us anything about the President’s immigration speech next week and any other events from the week ahead?

     MR. CARNEY:  What I can say is that the speech will reflect the President’s continued commitment to find a bipartisan way to create a bipartisan — rather comprehensive immigration reform.  As I think I said earlier this week, the fact that we were not able to achieve that in the first two years only means that we need to refocus our efforts and try to find that compromise.  In the past, obviously there has been Republican support for the kind of comprehensive immigration reform that is necessary and we hope that there will be again in the future.  

     Q    — rest of the week ahead?

     MR. CARNEY:  I do have that, if you’re ready for it.

     Q    Can you field more questions after?

     MR. CARNEY:  Do you want to ask those questions first, and then I’ll do —

     Q    In April of 2008, President Obama — or then candidate Obama appeared at a gas station in Indiana — gas was at $3.60 a gallon — said we need to vote for change, a new set of policies. He’s returning to Indiana now with gas well over $4.00 a gallon. What does it say about the success he has had over the last three years in dealing with the fuel issue, the gas issue?

     MR. CARNEY:  Well, I think you’ve heard the President speak quite a lot lately about the impact of high gas prices on Americans’ pocketbooks and wallets.  We’re very concerned about it.  We do note the steep drop in oil prices in the last couple of days.  And I would also note that one of the things the Attorney General task force will be looking at is coordinating with state attorneys general to make sure that we don’t have a what I’ve heard described as a “rockets-and-parachutes phenomenon,” where prices at the pump rocket up when oil prices rocket up, and yet they come down in a parachute fashion when oil prices go down.  So we want to make sure that a drop in oil prices is appropriately reflected in a drop in gas prices at the pump.

     Q    Does the President believe gas prices will drop in the coming months?  The futures market seem to be indicating they will.

     MR. CARNEY:  We don’t predict markets here, obviously.  And we have seen a drop.  We have — but they go up and down.  The President, as you know, has said many times that there are no silver bullet solutions here, no short-term solutions, and that’s why he is committed to — while we are doing the things in the short term that we hope can provide some relief, the big challenge is the long-term solution that weans us off our dependence on foreign oil, that diversifies our energy supply, that allows us to build clean energy industries in the United States that both enhance our national security and provide quality jobs in this country. 

So that’s been his commitment; you’ve heard him speak about that many times.  You’ll hear him speak about it again today in Indiana.

     Q    What does the President think about all the Monday morning quarterbacking on the Osama bin Laden operation?  Does he think it’s helpful — all the criticism and the questioning about how it went down?  Does it —

     MR. CARNEY:  I haven’t heard much criticism about how it went down.  What I’ve heard is a pretty universal acclamation of the fact that a remarkable team of U.S. personnel conducted one of the most — one of the riskiest operations imaginable flawlessly, and limited collateral damage and civilian casualties, achieved their goal of bringing Osama bin Laden to justice, and returned safely every single American.

     So I think that is what most people have focused on, appropriately, because it was a remarkable achievement that was the product of years of intelligence work, years of training in the case of the personnel involved in the actual mission, and some very bold decision-making by the President and others to bring this about.

     Q    Jay, how did he feel about yesterday’s events in New York?

     MR. CARNEY:  He felt very good about it.  I think he — the meetings with firefighters, with the police, with families and loved ones of victims were powerful events.  And I think he understands that this is a bittersweet moment, especially for those who lost loved ones in 9/11, both in New York, in Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon.  And he was very glad he made the trip.

     Q    Jay, the President won Indiana by less than 30,000 votes in ’08.  Does he think that it’s as tough or even tougher political environment right now for him to get support for his agenda or even win reelection?

     MR. CARNEY:  Well, I think that it’s a long time before next year’s election, and he’s focused on the things that a President needs to be focused on — our national security — his focus on that I think has been quite evident in the last several days; and the economy, which is what he’ll be focusing on today in Indiana.

     I think that the President firmly believes that making the right policy decisions tends to be beneficial come political season, but for him, at least, political season is a long way off.

     Q    — we’re flying into another swing state.

     MR. CARNEY:  The fact is that this — Allison Transmission is, as I just read to you, a major manufacturer of the kind of the technology that the President believes is going to help us win the future in the 21st century.  So I think we go where the action is, and in this case, this company is where the action is.

     Q    Did the President watch the Fox News Republican debate last night?

     MR. CARNEY:  I haven’t asked him.  I don’t know.  I think there was some basketball on last night — maybe there wasn’t, maybe that’s tonight — so I don’t know.  I think the Bulls are playing tonight, is that right?  Well, come on, guys. 

Yes.  Okay, I can do the week ahead if you don’t have any more questions.

     On Monday, the President will meet with heads of the Chinese Strategic Economic Dialogue delegation at the White House. 

     On Tuesday, the President will travel, as you know, to the El Paso, Texas area to deliver a speech on comprehensive immigration reform.  He will then travel to Austin, Texas, before returning to Washington, D.C.

     On Wednesday, the President will participate in a CBS Town Hall at the Newseum.  In the evening, the President and the First Lady will host a celebration of American poetry and prose by welcoming accomplished poets, musicians and artists, as well as students, from across the country to the White House.

     On Thursday, the President will deliver remarks at the National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast. 

     And on Friday, the President will attend meetings at the White House.

     Q    The town hall is Wednesday, not Thursday?  Initially it was —

     MR. CARNEY:  That’s correct, it’s Wednesday. 

All right, thanks, guys.



White House Press Gaggle

By White House Press Secretary Jay Carney
Aboard Air Force One
En Route Joint Base Andrews
 
1:39 P.M. EDT
 
MR. CARNEY:  Good afternoon, everyone.  I don’t have any opening announcements or statements, so I will take your questions.
 
     Q    The President said in an interview today that the debt ceiling won’t be raised without spending cuts.  Can you explain what he means by that?  Are these two separate issues like you have been saying, or one and the same?
 
     MR. CARNEY:  I think what the President made clear and has made clear in the past is that we — there are two urgent tasks that need to be addressed.  One, Congress has to vote to raise the ceiling on our debt.  That’s an imperative that shouldn’t be linked or held hostage to any other action because the consequences of not raising the debt ceiling — those consequences would be catastrophic to the American economy, to the global economy and to America’s creditworthiness internationally.
 
     We are also moving with a great sense of urgency towards — taking steps towards greater deficit reduction, through the speech the President gave the other day, and the process that he has asked the Vice President to oversee and leaders of Congress to appoint members to participate in where they can come together and begin to negotiate areas where we can agree to bring about further deficit reduction in a balanced way that can achieve the kind of results that we think are what America needs economically and for our future.
 
     These are both urgent, but they’re not linked.  How this will play out remains to be seen, but both need to be done.  And with regards to the debt ceiling, it cannot be linked or held hostage to something that wouldn’t pass — couldn’t reach consensus.  It has to be done.  All the leaders of Congress of both parties have said that, and we obviously share that sentiment.
 
     Q    So the one isn’t contingent on the other?  It seemed in the interview like he was saying that he recognizes the relationship —
 
     MR. CARNEY:  I think what the President was saying is that he recognizes that the — that Republicans want more deficit reduction.  He wants more deficit reduction.  He wants it in a balanced way.  He also said that as in any compromise and any negotiation, he recognizes he’s not going to get 100 percent of what he wants or that it’s not going to be his way only, and Republicans need to recognize that, which is how we ended up with an agreement last week on the funding for the 2011 budget.
 
So I think that’s the process that he — a similar kind of process that he hopes that we’ll see as we go forward with — on the deficit-reduction track for the larger-picture issues that we’re looking at.
 
Q    But if his condition now is that the deficit ceiling won’t be raised without an agreement to cuts —
 
MR. CARNEY:  That’s not his position at all.  His position is that the deficit ceiling must be raised — absolutely.  And that’s the position of the Speaker of the House, the Senate Minority Leader, the Senate Majority Leader, the House Minority Leader, et cetera, et cetera — all the major players in Congress — which is fortunate because as we’ve all said and as I know you know, if you talk to economists or businessmen or women, that there’s simply too much at stake here to be playing around with the full faith and credit of the United States government.
 
     What he is saying is that he recognizes that there is a great focus, as there should be, on the need for deficit reduction and building on the significant achievement of last week which was — and voted on and passed into law yesterday the — for the fiscal year 2011, the largest domestic non-defense discretionary spending cuts in history.
 
     Q    Does the President believe Paul Ryan is a sincere person?  I mean, his comments in the public were very different than the comments when the reporters left the room, were very pointed in saying does he think — you know, implying that Ryan was not serious about the deficit, he voted for two wars, that kind of thing.  Is there a difference between what he said in public and what he said when we thought he was not in public?
 
     MR. CARNEY:  Actually I think what he said in that session you’re talking about and the things he’s said in more public forums have been entirely consistent.  And you can’t in one breath criticize him for being pointed in his comments about the House Republican budget plan in public and then say, my gosh, he was pointed and so different in private, because he is making clear that the visions are quite different.
 
He does believe that Chairman Ryan is absolutely sincere and that he believes that this is the right — that that’s the right path, the one he put forward is the right path for America.
 
The President simply disagrees because he doesn’t think that it’s balanced.  He doesn’t think that we need to — that the price of deficit reduction needs to be ending the guarantee, the health benefits that Medicare has provided our seniors, cutting energy — clean energy investment by 70 percent, cutting education by 25 percent, cutting infrastructure by 30 percent — and all so that we can not just reduce the deficit but so that we can extend tax cuts for the wealthiest of Americans and give new tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans.  That’s just not — that’s just — it’s a different vision.
 
And then — and I think the point he’s making is that there is more here than a goal of deficit reduction.  It’s a vision of government and what — and the way our system should work and what America should look like.
 
And when he talked about those votes under the previous administration, he was making the point that that’s evidence that this is more than — this is not just about deficit reduction.  If it were just about deficit reduction, you wouldn’t vote for —
 
Q    Wars.
 
MR. CARNEY:  — an entitlement, a brand new entitlement without paying for it.  You wouldn’t vote for two massive tax cuts without paying for them, or for the funding of two wars without paying for them, which is what happened in the first decade of this year.
 
     Q    How did it happen last night that those remarks were piped back into the press room?
   
     MR. CARNEY:  It was a miscommunication, nothing more than that.  But we’ve — it’s not a problem, not an issue.
 
     Q    Is the President embarrassed about anything that he said —
 
     MR. CARNEY:  Not at all.
 
     Q    — or regret —
 
     MR. CARNEY:  Not at all.  There’s nothing —
 
     Q    — might have clarified them differently if he had known they were for public distribution?
 
     MR. CARNEY:  He obviously — that was meant to be a closed-press event.  He was taking questions from supporters.  But there’s nothing — nothing he said that contradicts anything he said in public.
 
     Q    In an interview yesterday, the Senate Majority Leader had raised some doubts as to whether the President’s Afghanistan policy is going to be ultimately successful.  Did the Commander-in-Chief hear those remarks, and did he have any thought on them?
 
     MR. CARNEY:  I’m not aware that he heard those remarks, so I don’t have a response for you.
 
     Q    I’ve only read the top line from the AP interview, but it looks as if the President, speaking about Libya, said that they are at a stalemate and — but that he still believes Qaddafi will go.
 
     MR. CARNEY:  Right, what his point was that the — what he said, rather, was that the — obviously the military conflict remains contentious and unresolved because what the NATO mission is — NATO is fulfilling its mission which is to enforce the no-fly zone, enforce an arms embargo and provide civilian protection; it is not to win the war or decapitate the regime.
 
But all the other measures that the United States and its partners are taking are tightening the noose around Qaddafi, putting more pressure on Qaddafi, with the end goal of having him accept the fact that he can no longer rule legitimately in Libya, and that the Libyan people need to decide their future for themselves.
 
     Q    How does he think, though, that Qaddafi is going to come to that realization or leave by force in some other way?
   
     MR. CARNEY:  Well, I think that it becomes increasingly clear when your assets are frozen, your capacities have become increasingly diminished, that you are — your days are numbered in terms of your — what exactly are you ruling over.  And that what we have seen, because the sanctions are targeted not just at Colonel Qaddafi and his family but members of his inner circle who are being identified in greater numbers every week, that there — pressure is put on them to make an existential decision about who they want to be, whose side do they want to be on, the Libyan people’s side or Colonel Qaddafi’s side, a man who has lost all legitimacy in the eyes of the world and his people.
 
     So that kind of pressure has led to defections already.  We hope and anticipate that it will lead to more defections, put more pressure on Colonel Qaddafi, and eventually lead to his stepping down from power.
 
     Q    In the Q&A last night the President said that he anticipates that Republicans will seek to kind of put policy issue riders on future budget-type bills.  So would he veto a deficit-reduction package that had unrelated social policy or environmental riders?  Because he did, in the end, have to accept some, as you know.
 
     MR. CARNEY:  Well, I’m not going to speculate about what might be on a bill that hasn’t been written or anything like that.  What I will say is that his position on these issues was made pretty clear in the negotiations over the 2011 continuing resolution and — because he doesn’t believe that highly contentious social issues or ideological issues belong in budget bills.  But I’m not going to pre-negotiate something that doesn’t even exist at this point.
 
     Q    What time is he going to sign the 2011 budget bill — today?
 
     MR. CARNEY:  I don’t know, actually — we can find out.
 
     Q    Will that be open, closed, photo —
 
     MR. CARNEY:  We’ll have to find out.  I don’t know.
 
     Q    Do you guys have any reaction to the CBO report that shows that the budget deal reduced government spending by $20-$25 billion, not the $38 billion number?  Have you seen that?
 
     MR. CARNEY:  I have read reports of that.  My only reaction is that we worked together with members of Congress on a package that, by the numbers, Republicans and Democrats measured together in the negotiations, reduced spending by roughly $38.5 billion.  And there are obviously different ways to measure this and there are different kinds of spending, but those are real cuts with real impact on the government and on Americans.
   
     Q    Is there a week ahead?
 
     MR. CARNEY:  You know what, I don’t but I’ll — my understanding is that they are providing something back at home in Washington out of the press/comms office.  But if — I’ll double-check to see if there’s anything additional on top of that.
 
     Q    Great.
 
     MR. CARNEY:  All right?
 
     Q    Thank you very much, Jay.
 
     MR. CARNEY:  Thanks for flying with us.