Washington, DC – Today, Democrat Majority Leader Steny Hoyer called for a “serious discussion” about raising taxes, even on the middle-class.  At the same time, Rep. Hoyer suggested Congress should continue to delay action on crafting a budget that reins in spending until the next fiscal year, at the earliest. 

The following is reaction from Ways and Means Ranking Member Dave Camp (R-MI), who is also a member of the National Commission for Fiscal Responsibility and Reform – commonly referred to as the “Debt Commission.”

“Given that Democrats have increased domestic discretionary spending by 84 percent since President Obama took office and that Democrats won’t even produce a budget this year, it is not surprising that some Democrats now think we need to raise taxes to solve Washington’s problems.   I disagree.  Our problem is not that taxes are too low; it is that government spending is too high. 

“The American people and employers are not ATMs from which Washington can withdraw unlimited funds.  Democrats have driven spending well above historic norms in an attempt to spend their way to prosperity – that has failed.  Trying to tax their way to prosperity will also fail. 

“While we need to have a serious discussion about taxes, it should focus on how the level of taxation impacts our economy.  Especially when the unemployment rate is stuck at nearly 10 percent, the primary questions we must ask are these: how does our tax code affect job creation and how will it affect families trying to make ends meet? 

“The tax code is riddled with complexity and inefficiencies. Clearly, the tax code must be reformed, but we should not confuse reform with job-killing tax hikes.”

NOTE: While Democrats claimed the massive run-up in government spending would create millions of new jobs, 48 out of 50 states now have fewer jobs than when their “stimulus” bill was signed into law.  Spending has grown so much under the Democrats’ watch that a Mercatus Center report shows that taxes would have to “increase by an average of $10,000 per taxpayer in order to pay for all of the federal government’s spending.”

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