McConnell: Obama’s tax message a 'distraction'

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) dismissed President Obama's call to only extend the Bush-era tax rates for the middle class, calling it a "distraction."

"Yesterday’s announcement was many things. But let’s be honest: it wasn’t a plan for deficit reduction. And it sure wasn’t a plan for job creation," McConnell said Tuesday on the Senate floor. "First and foremost, it was a distraction."

McConnell blasted Obama's push to only extend the Bush-era tax rates for Americans earning less than $250,000 a year, saying Obama's goal is income distribution, not job creation.

"His goal isn’t jobs; it’s income distribution. It’s his idea of fairness — which means you earn, he takes," McConnell said. "The president’s top priority for the past year hasn’t been creating jobs; it’s been saving his own. And his advisers seem to think that if they create enough scapegoats, he’ll slip by in November."

McConnell said instead of extending only some of the tax cuts, Congress should extend the Bush tax rates for all income brackets.

"We should extend all the income tax rates while we make progress on fundamental tax reform," McConnell said.

McConnell's floor speech comes as Democrats launch a coordinated push to move the political conversation toward taxes. On Tuesday, the Senate will vote on the Democrats' Small Business Jobs and Tax Relief Act (S.2237), which would provide a tax credit for small businesses that meet certain conditions.

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