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White House dismisses Republican "fiscal cliff" proposal

WASHINGTON | Mon Dec 3, 2012 5:02pm EST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House dismissed a "fiscal cliff" proposal from congressional Republicans that included tax reforms and spending cuts on Monday, saying it did not meet President Barack Obama's pledge to raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans.

"The Republican letter released today does not meet the test of balance. In fact, it actually promises to lower rates for the wealthy and sticks the middle class with the bill," White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer said in a statement, referring to a proposal laid out in a letter by House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner and other Republicans.

"Their plan includes nothing new and provides no details on which deductions they would eliminate, which loopholes they will close or which Medicare savings they would achieve. Independent analysts who have looked at plans like this one have concluded that middle class taxes will have to go up to pay for lower rates for millionaires and billionaires," Pfeiffer said.

(Reporting by Jeff Mason; Editing by Sandra Maler)
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Comments (1)
ccharles wrote:
Dont worry, your medicare and ss is safe. That which you paid into for the past 50 years is fine. NO.,. no you dont have to redistribute that part of your wealth, maybe share a little.

Dec 03, 2012 6:17pm EST  --  Report as abuse
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