Pelosi says Democratic Congress has cut taxes by more than $800B

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Thursday announced that the current Congress has cut more than $800 billion in taxes and will add another $285 billion in relief after lawmakers extend expiring tax provisions and make permanent the 2009 estate tax policy. 

Still, Democrats are having trouble conveying this message to voters. A recent Rasmussen poll found that 66 percent of survey respondents think they are taxed too much. The right-leaning American Enterprise Institute found that more middle-class voters think their taxes will increase under President Barack Obama despite his promise to the contrary.

"We've seen concern that Obama is not going to be able to keep his tax promise to not raise taxes on the middle class," AEI senior fellow Karlyn Bowman told The Hill. 

Bowman researched tax attitudes gleaned from a number of polls and determined that fewer voters are confident that Obama will be able to keep his campaign pledge to not raise taxes on individuals earning less than $200,000 and couples earning less than $250,000. 

The Tea Party, a group that outright opposes tax increases, will gather Thursday in Washington to protest future tax increases. They argue the expansion of the government under Obama will lead to higher taxes. 

Tax increases are equally unpopular on Capitol Hill. Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) told an audience at the Bipartisan Policy Center that Democratic leaders will have a hard time getting legislation through Congress that raises taxes, even for debt reduction.