時評： “削減工資稅”提案，政客的聖誕節玩物

“削減工資稅”提案，政客的聖誕節玩物

最近幾周來，“削減工資稅”（Payroll Tax Cut）提案，在“民、共”兩黨的政客手裏揉去揉來，慘不忍睹。區區幾十大洋（老百姓月收入的平均多得，$40），是否是有點小題大做？其實，焦點還是明年的大選，民主黨要接力保位，而共和黨奮力奪權。提案雖小，確很可能影響百姓的選舉取向，難怪政客們都把它小心翼翼的捧在手裏，生怕有個閃失，進而痛失良機。

簡言之，民意、民意，還是民意！這也是老人家若幹年前就給“國、共”兩黨政客們明示了的，“人民，隻有人民，才是創造曆史的動力。”

其實，“削減工資稅”四年前由前總統小布什簽署實施以來，除了工薪階層多幾個零花錢外，對整個國民經濟的改善是微不足道的，這一點，是有目共睹。但對政客而言，誰都不敢這麽說。在“民生”麵前，小百姓關心油、鹽、醬、醋、柴更勝於關心民主、政治，“民生”當然是會左右“民意”的。

為了爭取“民意”，“民、共”兩黨的政客都在這“民生”提案上大做文章，你附加一條，我再附加一件，弄得原始的“民生”提案在“附加”之下，已是麵目全非，從而要想在短時間內達到兩黨都能共識的“民生”提案，已經不可能了，這就產生了兩周前在參議院通過的妥協方案，先延緩兩個月，安撫“民心”，等權貴們酒醉飯飽、花天酒地之後，再回來繼續戰鬥。殊不知，眾議下院的政客們是否覺得有被上院忽略之感，周前就大膽的否決了上院已經通過的臨時妥協提案。特別是兩天前，眾議下院的議長震震有詞，要想讓我為這臨時妥協提案開綠燈，是絕對不可能的。可今天一早，在議長手裏僅把玩了兩天的玩物，就以聖誕的名義，通過了，確實是丟了共和黨的麵子，當然也就為民主黨總統奧巴馬的臉麵加了點光。

畢竟，聖誕節之際掃大眾之興，肯定是得不償失的。

道理很簡單，共和黨自己的戰略家，Karl Rove，道破天機，如果共和黨不讓這臨時提案通過，將會是共和黨政治上的重大損失，直接影響到明年的總統大選。

政治、肮髒的政治，政客的玩物，愚民的工具。

House passes payroll tax cut for Obama's signature

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/house-passes-payroll-tax-cut-150713137.html

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congress on Friday approved a two-month renewal ofpayroll tax cuts for 160 million workers and unemployment benefits formillions, handing President Barack Obama a convincing victory for his jobsagenda.

Back-to-back voice vote approvals of the measure by the Senate and Housecapped a retreat by House Republicans who had insisted that a full-year billwas the only way to prevent an immediate tax increase on Jan. 1.

The measure passed despite lingering grumbling from tea party Republicans.It buys time for negotiations early next year on how to finance a year-longextension of the 2 percentage point Social Security payroll tax cut.

It will keep in place a salary boost of about $20 a week for an averageworker making $50,000 a year and prevent almost 2 million unemployed peoplefrom losing jobless benefits averaging $300 a week.

Passage in the House — Friday's action on the measure took less than aminute — capped a swift retreat by House Republicans. Their move to force aholiday season confrontation with Obama and Senate Democrats had threatened tohit 160 million workers with a tax increase on Jan. 1. But it backfired badly.

Just 24 hours earlier, House leaders had insisted the only way to prevent thattax hike and a phase-out of jobless benefits for people out of work for morethan six months was to pass a full-year renewal.

Those goals had been embraced by virtually every lawmaker in the House andSenate but had been derailed in a quarrel over demands by House Republicans forimmediate negotiations on a long-term extension bill. Senate leaders of bothparties had tried to barter such an agreement among themselves a week ago butfailed, instead agreeing upon a 60-day measure to buy time for talks next year.

Thursday's decision by House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, to cave in to theSenate came after days of criticism from Obama and Democrats. But perhaps moretellingly, GOP stalwarts including strategist Karl Rove and the Wall StreetJournal editorial board warned that if the tax cuts were allowed to expire,Republicans would take a political beating that would harm efforts to unseatObama next year.

House GOP arguments about the legislative process and what the"uncertainty" of a two-month extension would mean for businesses wereunpersuasive, and Obama took the offensive.

Friday's House and Senate sessions were remarkable. Both chambers hadessentially recessed for the holidays but leaders in both parties orchestratedpassage of the short-term agreement under debate rules that would allow anyindividual member of Congress to derail the pact, at least for a time. Nonedid.

The developments were a clear win for Obama. The payroll tax cut was thecenterpiece of his three-month, campaign-style drive for jobs legislation thatseems to have contributed to an uptick in his poll numbers — and taken a tollon those of congressional Republicans.