Boehner: Balance the Budget Without Raising Taxes, Stop the Raid on Social Security

Via email:

Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) issued the following statement today on the Democratic budget proposal, which includes the largest tax increase in American history and fails to address the growing problem of entitlement spending:

“It’s ironic that as gas prices reach record highs, the House has passed the largest tax hike in American history. Rising gas prices are a hidden tax on working Americans, and rather than address the issue by expanding American energy production and reducing our dependence on foreign oil, Democrats are trying to balance the books on the backs of married couples and small businesses.

“The proposal on the floor today also failed to address the growing fiscal tsunami of Social Security spending. We need to get serious about real entitlement reform so we can preserve Social Security for future generations. Anyone who is serious about fiscal responsibility would support the Republican proposal to balance the budget without raising taxes and to stop the raid on the Social Security surplus.”

NOTE: House Republicans offered a proposal yesterday that would balance the budget without raising taxes and stop the raid on Social Security. In contrast, the proposal that passed today would raise taxes on every working American, including an immediate $50 billion AMT tax hike. This plan would mean increasing personal income tax rates on middle-income families, slashing the child tax credit, reinstating the marriage penalty, bringing back the death tax, and hiking taxes on dividends and investment earnings.

Last month, House Republicans released a report on Democrats’ failures during their “first 100 days” as a majority in Congress. The report exposed their record of failure on fiscal responsibility, including the failure “to propose a balanced budget that doesn’t raise taxes on middle class families and small businesses.”