Former Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean on Monday said the expiration of the Bush-era tax cuts for wealthier taxpayers will not cause the country to lose jobs.

"I don't think it has any effect on jobs at the upper income level and that's been proven," he told CNBC.

He added that under President Clinton the economy created a historic amount of jobs even though Congress increased taxes.

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"When Bill Clinton William (Bill) Jefferson ClintonNew poll finds Biden narrowly leading Trump in Georgia Changing the climate of presidential debates Davis: My advice to Joe Biden on eve of the debate — be Joe Biden MORE came in -- the huge federal deficits that were left to him by Ronald Reagan and George Bush, he raised taxes and he presided over the best eight years of the American economy in the last 100 years," he said.

Dean appeared on the program with House Minority Whip Eric Cantor Eric Ivan CantorThe Hill's Campaign Report: Florida hangs in the balance Eric Cantor teams up with former rival Dave Brat in supporting GOP candidate in former district Bottom line MORE (R-Va.), who argued a tax increase on wealthy taxpayers will be negatively impact already-weak job creation.

"People are still out of work," Cantor said. "You hear and I know you're hearing it as well, small business people, working families, investors, are scared to death, because they don't know where Washington is going next. So the equity is sitting on the sidelines, refusing to enter into the game of risk-based investment and we're at a standstill."

Recent reports show that companies are sitting on approximately $1.6 billion instead of investing it to expand their operations.

Republicans have argued that extending all of the Bush tax cuts would stimulate economic activity. Democrats suggest that view isn't supported by what happened after the tax cuts of 2001 and 2003.

Democratic leaders plan to decide the fate of the Bush tax cuts in the upcoming lame-duck session. President Obama and Democratic leaders in Congress want to extend tax rates on individual income below $200,000 and family income below $250,000, while allowing tax rates above those thresholds to rise.