Obama Tax Cuts To Be Bigger Than Expected

Here's one way for the president-elect to attract Republican support for his monstrous economic stimulus package: The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Barack Obama is working with Democrats on the Hill to put together $300 billion worth of tax cuts to individuals and businesses. That's waaay more tax relief than nearly anyone on both sides of the aisle had predicted.

The proposal, which Obama has said he will introduce ASAP after the inauguration, is designed to spur job creation by leaving tax payers with more money to re-invest into business. On top of that, companies will be allowed to write off certain losses from '08.

The Obama tax-cut proposals, if enacted, could pack more punch in two years than either of President George W. Bush's tax cuts did in their first two years. Mr. Bush's 10-year, $1.35 trillion tax cut of 2001, considered the largest in history, contained $174 billion of cuts during its first two full years, according to Congress's Joint Committee on Taxation. The second-largest tax cut -- the 10-year, $350 billion package engineered by Mr. Bush in 2003 -- contained $231 billion in 2004 and 2005.

Many in the minority GOP have already said it will be tough to fight Obama's stimulus plan, since he has so much momentum and good will going into his presidency and because times are so tough. But the one major issue for Republicans has been the idea of too much spending and not enough tax cuts. Now it appears Obama is unsticking that sticking point.