Taxpayer group outlines 'fiscal cliff' punt

Taxpayers for Common Sense is out Wednesday with recommendations to Congress and the White House on how to break the "fiscal cliff" stalemate.

In the past, TCS has outlined a $2 trillion grand bargain, but given the poor state of the talks, the group has now outlined a smaller $200 billion deal lawmakers can grab like a life-vest.

“This is your punt,” Steve Ellis of TCS said. 

The group proposes that Congress raise revenue by capping deductions at $50,000 for just two years, to generate $90 billion.

TCS said the revenue could also be achieved by raising tax rates on the wealthy, or a combination of eliminating tax deductions and raising rates. 

On spending, TCS proposes leaving discretionary cuts equal to half of the $109 billion annual cuts. It says appropriators should be given time to specify where the cuts should come from, rather than allowing indiscriminate cutting.

“They know where the bodies are buried,” Ellis said. 

The group would also limit Social Security benefits and lower cost of living increases by changing the way inflation is calculated.

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