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Breaking a united front in the Republican Party that goes back a number of years, freshman GOP Congressman Rick Crawford (R-AR) will unveil a millionaire’s surtax proposal today.
The Arkansas Republican will unveil the plan during a local television interview Thursday morning, and plans to introduce legislation when the House returns next week, according to sources familiar with his thinking.
Crawford will propose the additional tax— expected to be north of 2.5 percent — on individual income over $1 million as part of a broader fiscal responsibility package.
“He’s watched the Gangs of Six and 100 and deficit commissions, as well as leadership’s budget and tax plan, and he feels there will never be a deal that will pass the Senate without a revenue component,” a Crawford aide said, describing the legislation without attribution because it has not yet been officially announced.
The Grover Norquist excommunication ceremony is scheduled for Tuesday.
Crawford must have the mistaken impression that his party cares about fiscal responsibility. Don’t know where he got that from. In fact, his party cares about redistributing wealth upwards. This is the direct opposite! Did he not read the charter?
There’s nothing yet up at Crawford’s House website, so I suppose there’s still time for him to change his mind. His profile as a representative of largely rural Arkansas makes sense for this move, although I think the Waltons might want to have a word with him. Bentonville isn’t in his district, however.
The Tea Party Bat-Signal has been triggered on Crawford for his heresy, but he’s no fool. The filing deadline for Congressional elections in Arkansas ended March 1.
Of course, Crawford wants a balanced approach, and Republican holdouts on taxes were the only thing that stopped a bad debt limit deal which would have cut Medicare or Medicaid benefits. But I don’t see Crawford starting a stampede toward tax hikes, so all this does is soften up the Republican Party politically and make them look more intransigent.
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Excommunication, bullshit. This calls for a full scale exorcism.
He looks like a nice guay for a one-term congressman.
Is it just me, or does the vision of a bag of flaming dog poop outside his office door come to anyone’s mind????
Yeah, that’s what I thought.
He’s new. They just haven’t beaten it out of him yet. There’s a blanket party in Crawford’s near future.
So, what if Rick Crawford “steals” a March, and possibly April, May, June, and July?
You suggest DDay that Crawford is laboring under the “… mistaken impression that his party cares about fiscal responsibility.”
You thereby imply that a certain “other party” IS concerned with such things.
Now, I will not go so far as to suggest that you are a “member” of that other party, since that makes no difference, yet I would suggest that inferring such a thing as “fiscal responsibility” on the part of the “other party” (assuming they are not “ends” of the same “Servicer” to use a term much in vogue, of late?) suggests a certain suspension of both the observational process, and the thinking process which “interprets what has been observed …
Suppose, just suppose, that Mr, Crawford finds actual support for this idea, not from his party, but from a group little consulted these days, in fact, studiously, if we are to continue with this honesty “bit”, ignored?
Perhaps you may intuit the identity of that group to which I refer?
N0, not the gazillionaires, but the other people, the ignored and abused, people … often actually termed “the people” in certain quaint documents and one or two speeches that have found resonance among those “the people” sorts …
What if “the people” like the idea of taxing the rich, why even of taxing the fictitious “persons” known as corporations, a notion which Crawford, likely has not yet realized might also get the “interest” of “the people” concentrated and attentive …?
Mock Crawford quite as much as you wish, but you must admit there is something about the VERY idea of taxing the rich that IS, somehow, attractive and if enough people talk about that idea, for long enough … well, who knows, it night just catch on … and things might get out of “control”.
Frankly, it is more likely to be just a tempest in a tea-pot … but, possibly, just possibly, this revolting development of the “misguided” Crawford might give rise to a new possibility … might strike a chord, might find resonance …
Suppose that it might, would the Multi-dimensional Man, the current sitting President, stand up and move, quickly, pivoting to the “right”-side of the issue?
;~DW
Well, I’m showing my age but I did grow up in an Eisenhower Republican home. These people are still out there, with no one representing them. They can’t even open their mouths and speak. Maybe he’s got his finger on a pulse without a voice. Not that it will do the poor bastard any good.
Right there!
BYOS…….Bring your own soap.
I think you may be right. There are a lot of Eisenhower republicans, sensible people, that don’t have a dog in this fight. But, I don’t think Santorum can carry their banner. He’s too bat-shit crazy. Some may take him over Romney though, I suppose.
I could make a killing selling tube socks in the House.
Geeeez, I’m growing to HATE the word “pivot”.
I’ve got an old “lemonde stand” my niece isn’t using. East to set up and easy to disassemble. I’ll throw ina lounge chair with a cup holder.
I’ve got a Longhorns chair that I could use. Just need to head over to WallyWorld and buy a bunch of tube socks.
I have to agree with Jim Webb on this, its stupid to raise the top ordinary rate above 35% if you’re just going to leave the capital gains rate at 15%.
It’d raise more revenue and would be more politically defensible to just start taxing cap gains and dividends at ordinary rates.
Yet it is so VERY Barackian is it not? So sporting, so mythically “charged”, so very superlative, and so stupendously astute … turning, as it does, on a “center”, on a “grounded point”, seemingly above and beyond the childish “fray” … why, ncg, it is the stuff of poetry of the sort to inspire a Shakespeare …”Something, rotten there is, in this fetid “court”, me thinks!!!
;~DW
Neither putative “party” gives a rat’s patoot about so-called “fiscal responsibility.” Crawford’s a real short-timer, unless he can be “persuaded” to see things differently.
What’s that I hear? The clink-clank of 30 pieces of silver? Or could it be the (metaphorical) guillotine? One or the other…
Ooooh, looks populist! Hope Congressman Crawford wears Kevlar undies. On this, I must say, I wish him well.
ROTFLMAO!!
Brilliant.
Needed that, too, thanks DD.
;-)