House Republicans' tax reform plan benefits celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton but doesn't create a single job, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said.
"Congressional Republicans want to lavish huge across-the-board tax breaks on billionaire hedge fund managers and celebrities like Donald Trump," Reid said on the Senate floor on Tuesday.
Reid said the Republican plan, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's (R-Va.) Small Business Tax Cut Act, which
passed the House in April, would not actually create jobs.
"More than 99 percent of business would qualify for this extravagant tax break even if they don't create a single new job or raise wages for one single new employee," Reid continued. "In fact, fabulously rich so-called 'small-business owners' like Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton could qualify for these wasteful giveaways even though three-quarters of Americans oppose tax breaks for the wealthiest few — nearly half the benefits of this $46 billion proposal would go to millionaires and billionaires."
Reid's comments came a day after President Obama called on Congress to extend the Bush tax cuts for Americans making under $250,000 a year. Although Democrats have voiced support for allowing tax cuts on the wealthiest Americans to expire, some have said the cutoff for extending the cuts should end at $1 million rather than $250,000.
Reid's floor speech and Obama's call fall in line with a
coordinated push by Democrats to move the national conversation toward tax reform.
On Tuesday the Senate is set to vote to end debate on the Small Business Jobs and Tax Relief Act (S. 2237). The legislation provides a 10 percent tax credit for companies that paid salaries in 2012 that are above 2011 levels. The legislation also expands bonus depreciation for a year so companies can write off the cost of new equipment. The bill spends roughly $28.5 billion over 10 years but is not offset by spending cuts.
Just after Reid's speech, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) criticized S. 2237.
