An agreement has been reached and voted on…and the payroll tax cut will continue.
But what happened behind the scenes during these negotiations?
The payroll tax cut has been controversial and contentious on several levels.
Is it paid for?
And given Social Security’s long term funding problems, is this a smart thing to do?
It was a titanic political struggle over roughly $80 a month.
That’s the estimated average benefit per worker from the payroll tax cut.
Payroll taxes fund social Security and Medicare, and it’s the Social Security rate olf 6.2% that was cut by 2% last year.
The new agreement keeps it going for two months into 2012.
Congressman Louie Gohmert stopped by KETK to offer his thoughts on the debate.
“I’m given to understand that supposedly Boehner told McConnell you guys pass a two month extension and we’re with you,” Gohmert said. “ Just rack up as many votes as you can and that will give our Republicans in the House cover. The Republicans in the House had made clear we’re very concerned about some things in this two month extension. First of all, we should do the extension for the full year. Second, unlike the Senate bill which raises some e money to pay for the 2% cut in Social Security taxes, by raising fees on people who get Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans, and those aren’t rich people. In the House version we raise fees on mortgage-backed securities, which are that Wall Street people pay for.”
Gohmert worries that the leadership has strayed from the open negotiations they originally promised?
“So they negotiate a deal behind closed doors,” Gohmert conti nued, “and this is Republican and Democrat leadership, in the House and Senate, both of them complicit in that.”
Gohmert also told KETK, he is worried about the precedent this sets by turning Social Security funding into just another political tool.
Gohmert said that’s just short sighted.