America’s Sweethearts
Jul 28th, 2006 at 2:51 pm by Susie
They can’t give unless they take with the other hand:
WASHINGTON - Congress would pass an increase in the minimum wage before leaving Washington for vacation, but only as part of a package rolling back taxes on the heirs of multimillionaires, a Senate leadership aide said Friday.
The GOP package would also contain a popular package of expiring tax breaks, including a research and development credit for businesses, and deductions for college tuition and state sales taxes.
The wage would increase from $5.15 to $7.25 per hour, phased in over the next two years, the aide said.
The maneuver is aimed at defusing the wage hike as a campaign issue for Democrats while using its popularity to spur enactment of the Republican Party’s long-sought goal of permanently cutting taxes on millionaires’ estates.
But it seemed certain to provoke outrage from Democrats clamoring for a measure devoted solely to raising the minimum wage.
House Plans Vote On Minimum Wage
Some House Republican leaders say they hope to vote on a raise in the minimum wage before leaving Wa
The first $7.25 of every millionaire’s annual income
should be exempt from federal taxes
(phased in gradually, of course.)