The Hill reports:
Senior Democrats had expected the controversial issue to be postponed until after the election, when a fiscal responsibility commission appointed by President Obama is due to release its recommendations.
Instead, Democrats will debate the highly contentious issue of whether to extend more than $3 trillion in tax cuts passed under Bush before Election Day. The tax cuts, which include reductions of the marginal income and capital gains tax rates and repeal of the estate tax, are due to expire at the end of the year.
“I expect it to be on the floor in September,” said Reid spokesman Jim Manley.
Manley declined to discuss the details of the upcoming tax package.The Senate is expected to act on the question of extending the Bush-era tax cuts before the House does.
As with the energy bill, letting the Bush tax cuts expire looks like a loser for Harry Reid. He’ll have opponents in his own caucus, like Sen. Conrad (D., N.D.) who said:
“My reaction would be don’t cut spending, don’t raise taxes, and that would mean on anyone.”
(NB – that translates to “keep running record deficits.”)
And even the far more liberal House has toyed with extending the cuts to avoid impeding recovery.