After a contentious election, another political battle is brewing in Washington, this one with potentially serious consequences for the US economy. Both sides staked out their positions Friday on what to do about the so-called "fiscal cliff" - a combination of tax hikes and spending cuts that would automatically take place at the end of the year. Economists warn failure by US lawmakers could send the economy into another tailspin.
Fresh from his election victory, President Barack Obama sounded conciliatory Friday - inviting congressional and business leaders to the White House next week to begin discussions on a deficit reduction plan. The president said he is open to all ideas, but pushed back against any plan that relies solely on spending cuts to reduce the nation's debt.
"We can't just cut our way to prosperity. If we're serious about reducing the deficit, we have to combine spending cuts with revenue, and that means asking the wealthiest Americans to pay a little more in taxes," said Obama.
Republicans say tax hikes on the wealthy would result in massive job losses.
Speaking an hour before the president, House Speaker John Boehner said he would support some revenue increases as part of overall tax reforms. But the Republican congressional leader wants to extend the deadline for negotiations to work out differences.
"2013 should be the year we begin to solve our debt through tax reform and entitlement reform, and I'm proposing we avert the fiscal cliff together in a manner that insures that 2013 is the year that our government finally comes to grips with the major problems that are facing us," said Boehner.
Automatic tax increases and drastic cuts to defense and domestic spending kick in January 1, 2013 unless Congress is able to craft a plan to reduce the nation's nearly $16-trillion debt.
After campaigning for months on allowing tax cuts to expire only for wealthy Americans, Obama said the time for "drama and negotiations" is over.
"Nobody, not Republicans, not Democrats want taxes to go up for folks making under $250,000 a year. So let's not wait. Even as we're negotiating a broader deficit reduction package, let's extend the middle class tax cuts right now, let's do that right now," said the president.
Uncertainty over the US fiscal crisis has roiled financial markets for weeks. The Congressional Budget Office says the combination of higher taxes and reduced spending could cut the deficit in half. But it would also push the world's largest economy into a recession, cost millions of jobs and threaten economic growth in other countries.
国内英语资讯:Chinas legislature to convene 2017 session on March 5
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》英语一轮总复习(2016春出版)第一部分 教师讲义手册:选修七7-3
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修一1-2
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修四4-3
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修三3-4
国际英语资讯:Spotlight: World strikes different chords on Christmas
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》英语一轮总复习(2016春出版)第一部分 教师讲义手册:选修七7-6
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》英语一轮总复习(2016春出版)第一部分 教师讲义手册:选修八高考专项突破1
国内英语资讯:China to pilot supervisory system reform
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》英语一轮总复习(2016春出版)第一部分 教师讲义手册:选修七7-1
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修三3-3
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修四4-6
国内英语资讯:China Focus: China adopts law on traditional medicine
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》英语一轮总复习(2016春出版)第一部分 教师讲义手册:选修八8-2
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》英语一轮总复习(2016春出版)第一部分 教师讲义手册:选修八8-6
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修三3-5
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修三3-2
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修一1-1
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》英语一轮总复习(2016春出版)第一部分 教师讲义手册:选修七写作进行时7
国际英语资讯:Britains GDP unaffected in immediate aftermath of Brexit vote
【新人教版 必修2】2016届高三英语一轮总复习(佳作诵读+考点锁定+高频考点+课堂双基+课时作业)精品课件《unit 4 Wildlife protection》(115张ppt)
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》英语一轮总复习(2016春出版)第一部分 教师讲义手册:选修七7-2
A slap in the face 一记耳光
国内英语资讯:China Focus: China to introduce environmental tax for enhanced pollution control
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》英语一轮总复习(2016春出版)第一部分 教师讲义手册:选修七7-4
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修四4-1
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修四4-5
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》英语一轮总复习(2016春出版)第一部分 教师讲义手册:选修八8-5
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修一1-6
【外研英语,七省专用】2014《走向高考》一轮总复习(2016春出版)第二部分 学生作业手册:必修三3-6
不限 |
英语教案 |
英语课件 |
英语试题 |
不限 |
不限 |
上册 |
下册 |
不限 |