What Extending the Bush Tax Cuts Really Means

Republicans aren’t talking about cutting taxes; Democrats ARE talking about raising taxes. Simple as that.

Regardless of the fact that current tax policy was enacted during the Bush presidency, the discussion in Congress now is over legislative proposals either to continue the current policy — which Republicans propose — or to increase taxes, which is what the Democrats propose (as they always do). What is being debated is a tax increase, not “tax cuts for the wealthy.” Republicans are not proposing further reductions in the taxes paid by the rich. Democrats are proposing a return to the higher tax rates of pre-2001.

It is worth asking: What were the pre-2001 rates for the “rich”? What exactly are the “Bush-era tax cuts” that Democrats propose to repeal?

The 2001 legislation reduced the rate for the top income bracket (which currently applies to households earning $373,651 or more) from 38.6% to 35%, and reduced the rate for the next-highest bracket (which kicks in at $209,251 for a married couple filing jointly) from 36% to 33%.