In Sunday’s interview with Fox’s Bill O’Reilly, the President said “I didn’t raise taxes once. I lowered taxes over the last two years.”
The Wall Street Journal offers this correction:
‘I Didn’t Raise Taxes Once’
Refreshing the President’s memory.
As for tax increases on individuals, perhaps he forgot the health-care bill’s new 0.9 percentage point increase in the Medicare payroll tax for families making over $250,000 and singles over $200,000. That tax increase takes effect in 2013, as will the application of what will be a 3.8% Medicare surtax (up from 2.9% today) to “unearned income” for the first time. This is a tax hike on investment and interest income, which will reduce the incentive to save and invest.