44 - Retiring Sen. George Voinovich to oppose any extension of Bush-era tax cuts

Retiring Sen. George Voinovich to oppose any extension of Bush-era tax cuts By Felicia Sonmez Ohio Republican Sen. George Voinovich is planning to oppose legislation that extends any of the Bush-era tax cuts, becoming the first senator to state his opposition to any extension even as the White House and congressional leaders are expected to reach a deal on the issue this week. Voinovich, who is retiring early next year after a political career that has spanned more than four decades, including 12 years in the Senate, said Monday that he likely will oppose any extension of the cuts that does not include an attempt to tackle tax reform. "As I look at my experience, I believe that if this thing goes through and we extend it, we will kick this thing down the road," Voinovich said in an interview after addressing an Aspen Institute roundtable in Washington. "It's completely irresponsible." Voinovich has bucked his party on the tax-cut issue before. He was the only Republican senator to oppose the cuts when they were first proposed in 2000. Three years later, he joined with Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) in opposing President George W. Bush's proposed $700-billion tax-cut package, eventually succeeding in bringing the price tag down to $350 billion. In September, Voinovich suggested that he would vote against extending the cuts. He voted Saturday against one of the Democratic-sponsored measures that would have extended the cuts on income of $1 million or less for households. (He was not present in the Senate chamber to vote on another Democratic proposal to extend the cuts on income of $250,000 or less for households, although he said Monday he would have voted against that measure as well.) Voinovich said Monday that he was concerned that any temporary extension of the cuts would eventually lead to a permanent extension of them and was emphatic in stressing the need for any tax cuts to be fully paid for. "The American people should know that a lot of the reduction of their taxes is borrowed money from China," he said. "You've got to pay for it. You've got to pay for it. You've got to pay for it." He said that "a lot of people" in the Senate have told them they agree with him on the issue, although most of them are in a tough spot politically as opposing any extension of the cuts would allow taxes to rise at a time when the economy is still struggling. He added that Obama should have made a stronger effort to address the broader issue of tax reform during the White House's bipartisan, bicameral negotiations over the past week. "If I were president, I'd reconvene the group" and take up the issue of fundamental tax reform, he said. By Felicia Sonmez | December 6, 2010; 2:50 PM ET

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