Hillary Clinton on Workers Rights, Labor Unions, and the Social Security Tax Cap.

[NYC_SKP]

54. "Clinton supported following the advice of a bipartisan commission that favored raising..."

Senator Clinton supported following the advice of a bipartisan commission that favored raising the retirement age.

This can be inferred from her exchange during a debate:

OBAMA: Well, no … because the alternatives, like raising the retirement age, or cutting benefits, or raising the payroll tax on everybody, including people who make less than $97,000 a year — … those are not good policy options.

Senator Clinton responded with more wishy-washy defense of her position. Sounding like an old-time Republican, she gave the old mantra of America’s fiscal class war:

“When it comes to Social Security, fiscal responsibility is the first and more important step. . . . And with all due respect, the last time we had a crisis in Social Security was 1983. President Reagan and Speaker Tip O’Neill came up with a commission. That was the best and smartest way, because you’ve got to get Republicans and Democrats together. That’s what I will do.”

She promised not to “impose additional burdens on middle-class families – that is, implicitly defining the middle class as those who earn from $97,000 to $3,000,000,000 per year. This remarkable definition of “middle class” has yet to make it into the sociological textbooks, but I’m sure the University of Chicago will soon make the requisite adjustment.

Senator Obama was quick to respond: “That commission raised the retirement age, Charlie, and also raised the payroll tax.” He said that she was proposing a “magic solution.” (This was the equivalent of “voodoo economics” of which Pres. Bush I accused Ronald Reagan of practicing.)

In the same exchange, she said:

OBAMA: Well, Charlie, what I’ve said is that I would look at raising the capital gains tax for purposes of fairness. We saw an article today which showed that the top 50 hedge fund managers made $29 billion last year – $29 billion for 50 individuals. And part of what has happened is that those who are able to work the stock market and amass huge fortunes on capital gains are paying a lower tax rate than their secretaries. That’s not fair.

… I want businesses to thrive and I want people to be rewarded for their success. But what I also want to make sure is that our tax system is fair and that we are able to finance health care for Americans who currently don’t have it and that we’re able to invest it in our infrastructure and invest in our schools.

In response, Sen. Clinton say said:

CLINTON: … I don’t want to take one more penny of tax money from anybody.”

MODERATOR: Would you say, ‘No, I’m not going to raise capital gains taxes’?

CLINTON: I wouldn’t raise it above the 20 percent if I raised it at all. I would not raise it above what it was during the Clinton administration.

I don't want to call her a Republican, but it sure reads as if a Republican had taken over her brain and made those comments, doesn't it?



http://michael-hudson.com/2008/04/resurrecting-greenspan-hillary-joins-the-vast-rightwing-financial-conspiracy/