Bill Posey Hammers House Dems for Limited Tax Cuts Extension Vote

With Democrats in the U.S. House voting on Thursday not to extend tax cuts backed by President George W. Bush in 2001 and 2003, Florida Republicans are up in arms.

Raising taxes on millions of small-business employers at a time when unemployment remains at 9.6 percent nationally and much higher locally shows a lack of understanding of basic economics, said U.S. Rep. Bill Posey. This tax increase simply makes no sense. Washington should be focused on creating a more competitive economic environment so businesses of all sizes can grow and add jobs. This bill does the opposite by depriving entrepreneurs and business owners of additional capital which is necessary to compete and expand.

Posey said the Democrats should not have brought up the measure while there were still negotiations on extending the tax cuts.

Bringing this bill up for a vote while these negotiations are ongoing just smells of the type of politics-as-usual that Americans are fed up with, said Posey. This bill should have been brought to the floor for consideration under an open amendment process. Had that been allowed, broader tax relief would have likely been approved.

"I have yet to hear about a single private-sector job created due to a tax increase," concluded Posey.