Senate Democrats budget plan will reopen battle over taxes Washington Post



Senate Democrats plan to draft a budget blueprint that calls for significantly higher taxes on the wealthy, oil and gas companies and corporations doing business overseas, reopening a battle over taxes Republicans had hoped to lay to rest with the fiscal cliff.



For nearly four years, Senate leaders have ducked their legal duty to craft a comprehensive budget framework. Now, however, Democrats see the budget process as a great opportunity to pursue additional tax increases  and to create a fast-track process to push them through the Senate, Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Sunday on NBCs Meet the Press.



Theres going to have to be some spending cuts, and those will be negotiated, Schumer, the No. 3 Democrat in the Senate, said in an interview after the show. But doing a budget is the best way for us to get revenues.



The announcement comes days after House Republicans offered to forgo a potentially damaging clash over the federal debt limit, saying they would vote this week to permit the government to continue borrowing through mid-April. In return, House leaders demanded that the Senate revive the traditional budget process, by which the two chambers adopt their own blueprints and work out differences in conference committee.



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Source:Senate Democrats plan to draft a budget blueprint that calls for significantly higher taxes on the wealthy, oil and gas companies and corporations doing business overseas, reopening a battle over taxes Republicans had hoped to lay to rest with the fiscal cliff.For nearly four years, Senate leaders have ducked their legal duty to craft a comprehensive budget framework. Now, however, Democrats see the budget process as a great opportunity to pursue additional tax increases  and to create a fast-track process to push them through the Senate, Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Sunday on NBCs Meet the Press.Theres going to have to be some spending cuts, and those will be negotiated, Schumer, the No. 3 Democrat in the Senate, said in an interview after the show. But doing a budget is the best way for us to get revenues.The announcement comes days after House Republicans offered to forgo a potentially damaging clash over the federal debt limit, saying they would vote this week to permit the government to continue borrowing through mid-April. In return, House leaders demanded that the Senate revive the traditional budget process, by which the two chambers adopt their own blueprints and work out differences in conference committee.Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/senate-democrats-budget-plan-will-reopen-battle-over-taxes/2013/01/20/dc779300-632b-11e2-85f5-a8a9228e55e7_story.html 6 Tweet